French: Watts Up With EVs? 

Electric vehicles have hit the throttle hard into the market by nearly every OEM over the last decade. Manufacturers are racing toward stricter emissions targets and CAFE standards, and hybrid and electric platforms have become the industry’s fastest route to the goal’s finish line. But with that push has come an equally strong resistance from the automotive community.

Why? Because EVs are “new”? I don’t think so.

The industry has been servicing electrified equipment for far longer than most of our community realizes. One of America’s first electric vehicles—the Electrobat—hit the streets of NYC back in 1894 (lead-acid batteries for the fact-checkers). Electrification was such a hit that the public wanted to electrify taxis even then. Electrification clearly isn’t the underlying issue here. What we’re actually dealing with is something else entirely: fear, misinformation, and a fatal knowledge gap.

The media certainly doesn’t help with any of this. EV stories spread everywhere online like anti-seize because they’re dramatic, controversial, and attention-grabbing. Things like thermal events, charging failures, stranded drivers—those are the headlines that are generating clicks, comments, and fear. It’s not easy to avoid those articles—of course you want to click and read! Even when I’m not following the media, the stories I hear are wild. Once I was attending a conference where a group of panelists were speaking on the topic of HV vehicles. Even at a professional industry meeting, there was misinformation being scattered and fearmongering. The truth is that when we are exposed to things like that, it causes our industry to lose sight of reality; and the reality is that EVs are here to stay.

Knowledge is Half the Battle

Now, before the internet comes after me, let me clarify something. I’m still an internal combustion engine kind of gal. You’d have to pry at my cold, dead hands to take my 4.0L PowerTech engine away from me. But this article isn’t about choosing sides; it’s about understanding where this industry is headed and recognizing the opportunity when it’s staring us in the face. Accepting new EV clients into your shop and servicing more vehicles means one thing—profit. For your technicians, it’s all about improving and developing their skillset and turning more flag hours.

Techs didn’t demand heated seats, giant infotainment systems, adaptive cruise control, or cooled cupholders. Consumers did. Modern vehicles are packed with electrical systems because customers expect comfort, convenience, efficiency, and most important—safety. Electrification is just the next evolution of that trend. It may feel a little uncomfortable to the industry because this is the most advanced that a vehicle has ever been, but at the end of the day, it’s all the same nuts and bolts. An EV is still a car. It has suspension, steering, brakes, an HVAC system, tires, modules, wiring, and diagnostics. The only thing that has changed is simply the power source.

One thing that can’t be argued is the impressive performance of a battery-powered vehicle. It may be heavier, but it offers instant torque and horsepower with no delay. There are videos scattered over the internet of boxy, non-aerodynamic EVs absolutely humiliating a wide range of traditional performance vehicles on the track. Celebrating their speed and capability in this market didn’t come from hype—just physics proving a point.

Already Conditioned to Plug in

Another complaint surrounding hybrid/electric vehicles is the range anxiety (the fear of running out of battery before plugging in.) But seriously, let’s be honest with each other: this concept isn’t as scary and foreign as people make it sound. We already charge our phones, laptops, tablets, cordless tools, etc. It’s part of our normal routines. Most EVs even allow owners to schedule charging directly through the radio or an app. Charging infrastructure continues to improve rapidly, too. Large businesses, shopping centers, hotels, and even workplaces are now commonly installing charging stations. Many utility companies even provide online route-planning maps that display charging stations along travel routes. Sure, charging requires planning. But forgetting to plug in your EV overnight is basically the same thing as forgetting to charge your phone. It’s inconvenient but it’s not the car’s fault.

Even if we are solely focused on repairing these vehicles, looking at it from the consumer’s perspective offers food for thought, too. One of my co-workers drives an electrified car and reminds us weekly how much money he saves by driving “the uncool car.” Thanks to his driving habits and regenerative braking system, he easily triples the fuel economy of the rest of our team. In 2026, I’d say that’s a pretty big flex, knowing how expensive fuel is these days.

Debunking Fire Fears

If there’s one topic the media loves, it’s EV fires. Stories about thermal events spread faster than shop gossip, but many articles leave out the critical details of why the fire happened in the first place. Yes, lithium-ion battery fires can be slow-going to extinguish (up to 60 minutes), but internal combustion vehicles catch fire too—and nobody acts shocked when that happens. Insurance data also tells a very different story than social media headlines. Studies have shown that electric vehicles are significantly less likely to catch fire than gasoline-powered vehicles. EVs experience roughly 25 fires per 100,000 vehicles, compared to approximately 1,530 fires per 100,000 gasoline-powered vehicles.  What often gets overlooked is the charging infrastructure. In many cases, the issue isn’t the car at all. It’s boogered electrical work at the home.

Level 1 charging uses a standard household outlet and can take (roughly by manufacturer) 10-20 hours to fully charge. You see level 1 chargers most frequently come with the purchase of the vehicle. Level 2 charging is significantly faster (about half the originally stated time) to charge; however, it requires professionally installed electrical equipment capable of handling the load safely. That’s where the problems happen. You can’t expect undersized household wiring to continuously handle high electrical demand any more than you can expect a bargain-bin extension cord to survive powering diesel grid heaters in winter. The conductor has to be designed for the circuit. Again this isn’t an EV problem, it’s a circuit integrity problem.

Training for Technicians

The fear surrounding EVs doesn’t stop with consumers. Plenty of technicians are avoidant about servicing them, too. As a former automotive instructor, I’ve realized that the lack of training is what causes the fear behind electrical diagnostics and repairs. High-voltage systems sound intimidating until you understand them. In reality, EVs are engineered with multiple safety redundancies to protect both the driver and the technician. Technicians servicing EVs use certified high-voltage gloves, follow power-down procedures, and verify if there is a loss of isolation BEFORE repairs begin. Once the system is disabled and tested properly, there is no potential danger. Electric vehicles aren’t magical mystery machines. They’re just cars that demand you to understand and practice the fundamentals of electrical. And here’s the part that many techs overlook—by building on those electrical skills, it improves every area of your career—not just EV repair! You can take those skills and apply them to any vehicle in the shop.

Whether you like EVs or not, electrical knowledge is no longer optional in our industry.

Repair knowledge is only half the battle; taking the time to learn general product knowledge is just as critical. I’ve seen perfectly normal charging behavior mistaken for a charging fault because the service department didn’t take the time to understand how the system was designed to operate. Charging levels, scheduled charging, battery conditioning, ambient temperature limitations, and charge-rate management are all part of the equation. Once service folks understand why the vehicle behaves a certain way, diagnostics become more logical and easier to spot patterns for unusual events. And here’s the advantage EVs offer over many traditional vehicles: data. Modern EVs provide enormous amounts of diagnostic information.

An Opportunity for Shops

So, why are they a business opportunity for shop owners? Well, resisting EVs means resisting profit. More EVs on the road equate to more opportunities for:

• HV battery service
• ADAS calibrations and relearns
• Tire sales and alignments
• Brake inspections
• Electrical diagnosis
• Cooling system services (EVs sometimes have multiple cooling loops)
• Software updates and module programming

Does this sound similar to an ordinary vehicle? Because it is. Some shops are just too quick to say, “Sorry, we don’t work on EVs.” Out-of-warranty HV battery replacements can retail for well over $10,000, with labor times ranging from 8-12 hours depending on the platform. That alone is significant revenue potential. EVs also tend to eat through tires faster due to the increased vehicle weight, so if you are primarily a lube/tire shop, this means only good things for you. I know I’m rambling, but the business case is already here whether we acknowledge it or not.

You don’t have to drive an EV daily to understand them; heck, you don’t even have to like them. But refusing to welcome EV technology into your shop in today’s industry is like refusing to learn fuel injection in the 1990s. The industry is going to move forward as it always does, with or without us. The shops and technicians willing to embrace training now will position themselves ahead of the curve while the others scramble to catch up later. Once service personnel and techs understand the main principles and quirks of EVs, the fear will disappear.

A coworker of mine used to say, “information fixes cars.” That applies to EVs, too. Don’t let the badge scare you away from a massive learning opportunity or a big-ticket repair. The future of the industry isn’t coming—it has been parked in your bay since 8:30 this morning.