In theory, the engine of EV would last longer than the engine of an ICE. There are fewer moving parts, and the parts do not scrape against each other. ICE has many times more intricate parts that have to be tightly fitted, and therefore scraping against each other. Worse still, there is residue left throughout the EV engine, which is very corrosive.
The battery will wear down and be more expensive than a fuel tank, but the engine of a EV would, in theory, be much longer lasting.
Why? Small intricate parts that need to be a tight fit, and therefore rub against each other will wear down quicker, and be more expensive to replace.
Batteries being the only part of the EV that generally needs replacing, they are usually easily replaced. There is some sticker shock in replacing them, but that is more than made up for in reduced cost of maintenance for the rest of the car. The current thinking is that EV's will be much cheaper, and longer lasting than ICE cars.
Let's say once every 10 years, you need to replace the battery for $2,000, but there is no other repairs whatsoever. That would make it cheaper than a ICE, where you need to spend money replacing oil, filters, emission checks, spark plugs, and the hundred other things that go wrong. Good luck in spending only $200 a year keeping a ICE car going for 10 years.
And remember, with an EV there is no need to replace oil, oil filters, spark plugs, transmission fluid, and on and on and on. The Tesla does expect you to change the cabin air filter every couple of years.... But that is not that hard core.
It is looking more like 20 years with the new batteries, so that would mean that you would need to get the ICE down to $100 a year... I have owned ICE cars for 30+ years, and can tell you that is just not possible.
