<p>The transition to electric vehicles (EVs) is often lauded as a solution to mitigate climate change, yet their environmental impacts remain a topic of ongoing debate. This study aims to provide a comprehensive evaluation of EVs and internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles through a thorough review of existing life cycle assessment (LCA) studies and by conducting an LCA for 1&#xa0;km transport of an EV, focusing on hotspot emissions, key environmental indicators, and the role of recycling offsets. A literature review of 15 studies was conducted to assess commonly reported and underrepresented indicators, followed by a detailed LCA analyzing EV use under current (2022) and projected (2032) electricity grid scenarios in Florida, USA. The findings revealed that global warming potential (GWP) was the only indicator consistently reported across all studies, while fewer examined indicators, such as water depletion, land use, and ionizing radiation, were often overlooked. Quantitatively, the LCA results indicated that EVs generated approximately 0.010–0.276&#xa0;kg CO₂-eq/km, depending on the electricity grid composition and vehicle specifications. EV production, particularly battery manufacturing, was identified as a major contributor not only to GWP but also to impacts such as resource scarcity and human toxicity. Recycling offsets were found to reduce total life cycle emissions, yet many studies modeled the end-of-life (EOL) stage only in terms of waste processing, omitting these offsets. Overall, this research emphasizes the need to broaden LCAs to include underrepresented indicators and to improve life cycle inventory (LCI) transparency for more accurate and actionable sustainability assessments in the transportation sector.</p> Graphical abstract <p></p>