A drive system of an electric vehicle includes a drive motor, a transmission and a hydraulic system. The transmission has an input shaft, a countershaft, an output shaft, a first transmission unit placed between the countershaft and the output shaft, a first clutch, a second transmission unit placed between the countershaft and the input shaft, and a second clutch. The drive motor is attached to the input shaft, which is attached to the countershaft to provide power of the drive motor to the countershaft; the first clutch is configured for linking or cutting off the power transmission between the countershaft and the first transmission unit; and the second clutch is configured for linking or cutting off the power transmission between the countershaft and the second transmission unit. The first transmission unit has a first transmission ratio greater than a second transmission ratio of the second transmission unit.