The Lemon IndexEVs vs other cars: share of complaints
| Problem area | Electric cars | Other cars |
|---|---|---|
| automatic emergency braking | 41% | 10% |
| electrical | 23% | 20% |
| cruise and speed control | 14% | 5% |
| brakes | 14% | 10% |
| steering | 8% | 11% |
| lane assist | 6% | 4% |
| drivetrain | 5% | 13% |
| wipers and visibility | 4% | 8% |
| battery and drive system | 4% | 6% |
| lights | 3% | 3% |
One complaint can name several areas, so the shares add up to more than 100%. Engines and transmissions sit near the top for gas cars and barely show up for EVs.
Without the driver-assist complaints
Take out complaints about automatic emergency braking, lane assist, blind-spot and backup sensors, and EVs still draw more: 117 per 100,000 sold against 43 for other cars. The Tesla Model 3 and Model Y move from the bottom half to near the top.
| Electric car | Top problems | Complaints per 100,000 | Without driver-assist |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nissan Leaf | automatic emergency braking 23%, electrical 20%, brakes 20% | 67 | 47 |
| Tesla Model Y | automatic emergency braking 60%, cruise and speed control 18%, brakes 17% | 188 | 65 |
| Tesla Model 3 | automatic emergency braking 64%, cruise and speed control 21%, brakes 19% | 200 | 68 |
| Kia Niro EV | electrical 34%, drivetrain 11%, automatic emergency braking 11% | 92 | 79 |
| Rivian R1T | airbags 27%, automatic emergency braking 18%, brakes 11% | 113 | 86 |
| Rivian R1S | airbags 42%, seats 20%, electrical 17% | 131 | 107 |
| Chevrolet Bolt | electrical 40%, battery and drive system 17%, drivetrain 12% | 133 | 114 |
| Hyundai Kona Electric | electrical 72%, motor and cooling 13%, brakes 10% | 144 | 129 |
| Hyundai Ioniq 6 | electrical 53%, cruise and speed control 18%, motor and cooling 11% | 150 | 131 |
| Ford F-150 Lightning | electrical 48%, cruise and speed control 18%, drivetrain 17% | 164 | 135 |
| Ford Mustang Mach-E | electrical 52%, drivetrain 18%, battery and drive system 18% | 172 | 148 |
| Polestar 2 | electrical 40%, backup camera 30%, battery and drive system 9% | 232 | 154 |
| Cadillac Lyriq | automatic emergency braking 27%, electrical 26%, lights 24% | 234 | 159 |
| Chevrolet Blazer EV | automatic emergency braking 29%, electrical 28%, brakes 24% | 288 | 199 |
| Tesla Cybertruck | body structure 30%, wipers and visibility 15%, electrical 13% | 241 | 208 |
| Tesla Model X | steering 24%, automatic emergency braking 15%, electrical 12% | 258 | 212 |
| Kia EV6 | electrical 61%, battery and drive system 13%, brakes 10% | 250 | 232 |
| Tesla Model S | automatic emergency braking 24%, steering 17%, electrical 12% | 366 | 249 |
| Chevrolet Equinox EV | wipers and visibility 56%, automatic emergency braking 21%, electrical 8% | 355 | 276 |
| Hyundai Ioniq 5 | electrical 64%, battery and drive system 18%, drivetrain 17% | 390 | 355 |
| Volkswagen ID.4 | electrical 49%, automatic emergency braking 16%, cruise and speed control 11% | 477 | 357 |
| Kia EV9 | electrical 52%, automatic emergency braking 12%, lane assist 11% | 808 | 661 |
Sorted by complaints without driver-assist, fewest first. Complaints filed with NHTSA by the end of the year after the model year, model years 2021-2024.