that link doesn't actually directly address the point brought up though. It uses GREET for its number though and others have used that model to answer it, but the the estimates vary widely based on inputted assumptions. E.g.[0]
Tesla Model Y (EV) vs Honda CR-V (gasoline):
9,200 miles if the grid is 100% hydroelectric
89,000 miles if the grid is 100% coal
Everyone cites this EPA piece with heavy use of the word "typically" throughout.
The gp has made two statements:
1) that manufacturing is more polluting.
This is confirmed by your EPA link - the graph shows EVs are ~ twice as polluting in this area.
> Some studies have shown that making a typical EV can create more carbon pollution than making a gasoline car. This is because of the additional energy required to manufacture an EV’s battery.
2) that in 2016, the breakeven wasn't met.
Your EPA link states figures are from 2020. Obviously the breakeven is going to vary greatly by region depending on grid mix, but renewables in the US mix used in the EPA figures has grown ~33% between 2016 & 2020 so the difference isn't going to be small here.
The gp's line may be a myth on technicalities, but not a particularly binary right-wrong one. It's recently been a close enough call to be worthy of discussion, rather than the dogmatic claims of dishonesty in the replies.
I suppose the knives have come out to "debunk" the meaning of the word "depressingly."
Personally, I did the math on a Tesla purchase in 2020 given my own climate (very cold), driving patterns (90% high-efficiency highway driving), and energy mix. The end result was somewhere between 50k-100k miles to break even compared to a small, fuel-efficient Honda.
Keep in mind that a Tesla is a comparatively big car, and if you don't want to haul around that much car, you don't have to - estimates in the literature tend to compare cars of a similar "class," when your personal alternatives may be outside that class.
Also, the Reuters folks (and the EPA) are a bit optimistic and fall on the low end of published estimates I have seen for the carbon footprints of electric cars.
However, keep in mind that there's a huge variance here and many of the factors swing both ways: comparing a Tesla model X to a Honda pilot in SoCal (warm climate and tons of green energy) for a commuter (mostly city driving in traffic) may break even at 5000 miles or less.
Tesla Model Y (EV) vs Honda CR-V (gasoline):
[0]: https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/lifeti...