VoltAdmin

On the panel question: a product called a "panel tap" or "load-sharing EVSE" is worth knowing about if your panel is already full or you have limited amperage. The Span panel and the Juicebox with load-sharing hardware let you use spare amperage during off-peak times without upgrading your service. It's a software solution — if your dryer isn't running and your HVAC is off, you get all 30A for the car. When the dryer starts, the EVSE backs off automatically. EV's like the Tesla have this built in (configurable from the car's settings). Worth researching before paying for a panel upgrade.

@packrat I'm 22 months in on the Ioniq 5 with zero issues beyond the nav update that was pushed OTA (and worked fine). The forum consensus on the early nav module failures seems to be that it was a batch of modules from one supplier, caught early, and subsequent production cars don't have the issue. My car hasn't had it. For reliability data I'd look at J.D. Power IQS scores and the Ioniq 5 forums on Reddit — the owners are vocal about problems and you'd see a pattern if there was a widespread one.

The Supercharger network advantage is real and it's the thing that's hardest for non-Tesla owners to appreciate until they've used it. I've driven my Ioniq 5 cross-country twice and the Electrify America experience is — fine. The chargers mostly work. But "mostly work" feels different from Tesla's "always works" when you're 30 miles from the next charger. My one bad EA experience added 90 minutes to a trip. I've now started carrying an adapter to use Superchargers with my Hyundai (they've opened NACS to third parties) and the experience difference is stark.

The software update point is so real. Teslas in particular have gotten dramatically better over the years through OTA updates. My 2020 Model 3 gets features that weren't on the original spec sheet — Sentry Mode, Dog Mode, improved charging curve, Autopilot improvements. All wireless, no dealer involved. But I've also had updates break things — mine once lost all my presets and my wife was not happy. The flip side: traditional automakers push updates too now, but their implementation is much rougher. A Mustang Mach-E owner I know had to take their car to the dealer for an OTA update because Ford requires a dealer connection for powertrain firmware — the car literally stops updating over the air and sends you a message to visit a dealership. It's a known issue, well-documented in the Mach-E forums. And Sarah's right that Hyundai's OTA on the original Ioniq 5 has similar limitations for certain update types. The gap between Tesla's implementation and everyone else's is still real in 2024.

Stickying this one — EV vs. gas cost questions come up every week. Note that the original post has been corrected: the initial version significantly understated the insurance cost increase and overcounted the Highlander's maintenance by 2–3×. The corrected 3-year operating advantage is roughly $2,070, not $11,000+. @engineer's point about HV battery repair costs is exactly why the insurance delta matters more than people expect. Get a real quote for your specific car and profile before building a cost model — the gap between what you read in forum posts and what you'll actually pay can be $50–100+/month.