Electric vehicles (EV) are often promoted as a cheaper and more convenient alternative, but one Malaysian influencer said his experience has made him reconsider whether owning one is truly worth it.
Influencer Bryan Wee recently shared that he regretted selling his Honda Civic to purchase a Tesla after driving the electric vehicle for about a year.
According to Bryan, the Tesla did not make his daily life more convenient as he had initially expected.
Boughta Myvi for daily use and long-distance trips
In a Facebook post, Bryan said he has bought Perodua Myvi as a second car, particularly for long-distance journeys.
He explained that owning a Myvi would place less financial pressure on him while offering the practicality he was looking for.
After driving a so called foreign car, I realised it is nothing particularly special. I no longer feel like chasing luxury cars. I just hope my car does not give me too many problems,” he wrote.
Bryan said the Myvi appealed to him because it is fuel efficient, comes with lower monthly instalments and may even be affordable enough to purchase with cash.
He jokingly added that he would also feel less heartbroken if the car were scratched.
Says petrol in Malaysia is already affordable
Bryan also questioned the financial benefits of owning an electric vehicle, especially since petrol prices in Malaysia remain relatively affordable.
He acknowledged that an EV could be useful as a second vehicle for short journeys around the city, but disagreed with claims that it would automatically be more convenient or cheaper.
If you use it as a backup electric car within the city, it is genuinely quite good. But if you say it is convenient and saves money, I can confidently tell you that is not the case,” he said.
He added that some buyers might be attracted to EVs because they are environmentally friendly, offer a new experience or simply satisfy their curiosity.
However, based on his own experience, Bryan said he could not identify enough practical advantages to justify buying one as his main vehicle.
Electricity bill rose to nearly RM700
In a separate video, Bryan showed his electricity bills and claimed that the amount had increased significantly over the past few months.
He said his bill was RM368 in May and RM346 in June before rising to RM694 in the latest month.
According to Bryan, his household electricity bill used to remain below RM200 before he purchased the Tesla.
He also claimed that his electricity consumption for the latest month was almost identical to the previous month despite the bill nearly doubling.
RM694, you know? The previous two months were only over RM300, but this month it immediately went up to over RM600, almost RM700.”
Bryan questioned why there were no electricity subsidies or incentives specifically benefiting EV owners, given that the public has been encouraged to consider electric vehicles.
He also asked his followers whether they had experienced similar increases in their electricity bills.
‘Do not tell me electric cars save money’
Addressing claims that electric vehicles are cheaper to operate, Bryan compared the rise in his household electricity bill with the expected fuel cost of driving a Myvi.
He said he did not believe he would need to spend RM500 a month on petrol for a Myvi, referring to the approximate difference between his previous and current electricity bills.
Bryan added that people work hard to afford things that make their lives easier, not to purchase a car that they constantly worry might develop problems.
Despite wanting to sell the Tesla, he admitted that doing so after only one year would likely result in a significant financial loss.
As a result, Bryan decided to keep the Tesla as his second car for now and use his Myvi as his primary car.
Some questioned his electricity calculations
However, not everyone agreed that the Tesla was responsible for the sharp increase in Bryan’s bill.
One commenter questioned his calculations and claimed that RM500 worth of home charging would provide enough electricity to fully charge a 60kWh battery multiple times.
The netizen estimated that this would require Bryan to drive thousands of kilometres in a month for the entire increase to be attributed to the car.
Another Tesla owner defended the EV, saying they could travel from Kuala Lumpur to Johor Bahru in a long range model without encountering major issues.
Meanwhile, another netizen suggested that Bryan might move on to buying a motorcycle after getting a Myvi, joking: “After Myvi, surely buy motor.”
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