My gf wants me to spend $40k on an electric car

[NNadir]

15. If your issue is which kind of car is least odious for climate...

...you probably want to look at the carbon intensity of electricity on your grid. If it's over 300 g CO₂/kWh accounting for embodied energy of the components, a hybrid car is less odious than an electric car. On high intensity grids like PJM where i live, an electric car actually has higher carbon intensity than a pure gasoline car. People tend to forget that most electricity is generated using dangerous fossil fuels, and that carbon based fuels play a huge role in the mining, isolation and preparation of battery components. In general most people do not pay attention to the laws of thermodynamics. Electricity is thermodynamically degraded when it comes out of the wall socket.

There is also a moral cost, the cost of cobalt slavery.

I drive a Toyota Camry hybrid. In mild weather it gets close to 60 mpg, in winter about 50. It is not free of either moral or carbon costs, but the costs are minimized.