In order for governments and companies to increase consumer adoption of electric vehicles, they need to gain a deep understanding of motivation for purchase, and how consumers perceive the potential risks of owning an electric vehicle. Thus far, most consumer studies on electric vehicles have focused on potential adopters of electric vehicles not actual owners: their environmental concern, purchase motivation, vehicle attribute requirements, and need for financial incentives. However, much additional insight on electric vehicle adoption can be obtained from studying current owners of electric vehicles. In this study, we compare and contrast the characteristics of electric vehicle owners and owners of traditional cars (i.e., internal combustion engine cars). The two groups are compared along personal dimensions such as environmental concern, innovativeness, and subjective knowledge about electric vehicles. We also examine the determinants of satisfaction and dissatisfaction in electric vehicle usage by their owners. In addition, we study to what extent consumers’ hopes and fears about electric vehicles prior to purchase is realized during actual use. Such psychological and behavioral studies of electric vehicles owners have rarely been carried out with South Korean consumers prior to this study. This study shows the attitude and usage behavior of early adopters of electric vehicles in South Korea and compares their psychological characteristics with those of traditional vehicle owners. We show that compared to traditional vehicle owners, electric vehicle owners have greater pro-environmental concern, innovativeness, and subjective knowledge about electric vehicles. They also placed greater importance on driving experience and fuel efficiency, compared to traditional car owners. Non-adopters view electric vehicles as having limited range, with the danger of being stranded when batteries run out. However, actual owners said that they were satisfied with the range of their electric vehicles. In fact, electric vehicle owners were shown to use their cars more than traditional car owners. This type of “rebound effect” is due to lower cost of fuel for electric vehicles. Such rebound behavior has been shown in other energy-saving devices in past studies. Overall, there seems to be “forecasting error” about what it would be like to own an electric vehicle and what it is actually experienced. Finally, we show that satisfaction with electric vehicle usage is affected by subjective knowledge about electric vehicles, satisfaction with vehicle range, and satisfaction with fuel costs. The study’s contribution is two-fold. First, it shows that early adopters of electric vehicles are not only motivated by altruistic motives of protecting the environment, but also by the need to be innovative and the desire to lower fuel costs. Second, it shows large differences in forecasting error regarding electric vehicle ownership and usage.