CARZ vs IDRV

CARZCFirst Trust S-Network Future Vehicles & Technology ETF

IDRVBiShares Self-Driving EV and Tech ETF

In short

CARZ A 2011 vintage that changed lanes. It spent its first decade tracking global carmakers, then in 2022 switched to an index of roughly 100 worldwide names across electric and autonomous vehicles, the tech that runs them, and the materials inside them.

IDRV BlackRock's whole-chain take on electric and autonomous driving: carmakers, battery suppliers and the chip and software firms steering them, roughly 50 names worldwide, at a fee below most of its EV peers.

Stated mandate

CARZ The fund seeks to track, before fees and expenses, the S-Network Electric & Future Vehicle Ecosystem Index, which focuses on companies involved in electric and autonomous vehicles and related enabling materials and technologies.

IDRV The fund seeks to track an index of global companies benefiting from innovation and growth in electric vehicles, battery technologies, and autonomous driving, providing exposure across the EV value chain.

Why people hold it

• CARZ Old ticker, newer mandate: launched in 2011 as a global automaker index fund, it moved to the S-Network Electric & Future Vehicle Ecosystem Index in January 2022.sec.gov
• Covers the chain, not just the badges: about 100 global names spanning electric and autonomous vehicle makers, the enabling technologies, and the materials that feed them.
• The index caps any single holding at 4.5% and weights the rest by float-adjusted market cap, so one megacap cannot quietly become the whole fund.ftportfolios.com

• IDRV 0.48% a year, meaningfully under the median fee in its EV and battery cohort.
• Buys the whole value chain, not just the badge on the hood: EV makers, battery technology and autonomous-driving tech, across developed and emerging markets.ishares.com
• Index-tracking, rules-based, and running since 2019 on iShares plumbing, which is a long track record for a theme this young.
• Rates in the upper half of its EV and battery peer group on our review, ahead of pricier rivals like DRIV and BATT.

Worth knowing

• CARZ The 0.70% expense ratio sits a shade above the peer-group midpoint and well above leaner builds like FDRV (0.39%) and IBAT (0.47%).
• A small asset base and light trading make wider bid-ask spreads more likely here than in the category's heavyweights.
• One industry chain, worldwide: it moves with electric and autonomous vehicle sentiment rather than the broad market, and cash comes back once or twice a year at most.

• IDRV Thinly traded next to the household-name thematic funds, so bid-ask spreads deserve a look before you place an order.
• About 50 stocks tied to one theme. When the EV cycle turns, there is nowhere in the portfolio to hide.
• Growth-oriented, not an income sleeve: distributions land annually or semiannually, and global holdings bring currency swings along for the ride.

Full CARZ profile⁠

Full IDRV profile⁠