I'll be honest: when petrol prices spike, I feel a bit smug.
Not morally superior. Not save-the-planet one-upmanship. Just quietly pleased that my day-to-day transport costs are no longer tied quite so directly to whichever geopolitical mess has sent servo prices into orbit this week.
Three years ago I leased a dark grey Tesla Model 3 Long Range, and I have never regretted it.
If anything, every fuel price shock since then has made the decision look better.
There is something deeply satisfying about driving past a service station while the price board looks like it is auditioning for a role in a disaster movie. Everyone else is doing mental arithmetic, wondering whether to fill up now or wait until tomorrow, and I am just heading home to plug the car in.
That is the smug bit.
The serious bit is that, in Australia, an EV can actually make a lot of practical sense.
For us, the numbers were helped significantly by the federal government's FBT exemption for eligible EVs on novated leases. That scheme changes the conversation. It takes EVs out of the category of "expensive tech toy" and puts them much closer to "actually pretty sensible household decision", especially if you can charge at home.
And that is the part people miss. Most Australian driving is not a heroic outback expedition. It is commuting, errands, school runs, visiting family, heading to the shops, and the occasional Bunnings trip that gets out of hand. That kind of predictable suburban driving is exactly where EVs are strong.
You leave home with effectively a full tank. You spend less on running costs. You avoid a lot of the maintenance annoyances that come with internal combustion. And when global oil markets lose their mind, you are a lot less exposed to the fallout.
That matters.
Petrol price spikes are not just annoying. They are a reminder that ordinary household budgets are still vulnerable to events happening half a world away. A conflict breaks out, shipping gets disrupted, markets panic, and suddenly your weekly transport costs jump for reasons entirely outside your control.
We have all been trained to treat that as normal, but it is a bit absurd when you stop and think about it.
EVs are not perfect, and they are not the right answer for everyone. Charging access still matters. Upfront cost still matters. Renters and apartment dwellers have a harder path. Regional charging still needs improvement.
But if your circumstances line up, especially with the current FBT-exempt lease settings, the case can be very strong.
So yes, I do feel smug.
But it is not virtue-signalling smugness. It is spreadsheet smugness. Tax-policy smugness. Quiet, home-charged, dark-grey-Tesla-in-the-driveway smugness.
And honestly, I think I have earned it.