Getty
Automakers worldwide are ramping up to produce a coming fleet of electric and gas/electric hybrid vehicles, but the question in the U.S. remains whether they will ever become mainstream vehicles. Consumers here remain far more wary of the electrified rides than their counterparts in other industrialized nations, according to a survey of 10,000 respondents across five countries – the U.S., China, France, Germany, and the U.K. – conducted by the global consulting firm OC&C Strategy Consultants.
Only 53 percent of Americans queried say they’d consider buying an electric or plug-in hybrid-powered car, compared to 77 percent of those in France and a whopping 94 percent of respondents in China. The survey attributes concerns over access to charging stations away from home and financial considerations as being primary barriers to acceptance in the U.S.
It doesn’t help that there seems to be a culpable lack of enthusiasm from both automakers and dealers in selling electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles here. A recent Sierra Club report, based on the experiences of 579 “secret shoppers,” found serious shortfalls in electric car availability, how they were presented and charged for test drives, and salesperson knowledge regarding the products. Hopefully with Ford making a big marketing splash for its coming Mustang Mach-E full electric crossover, and a slew of new models in the pipeline this could well be changing.
As for the cost factor, it doesn’t help that Congress has yet to extend or amend the current federal incentives for purchasing an electric or plug-in hybrid vehicle. One-time federal tax credits of between $3,500 and $7,500 were enacted in 2010 to help spur sales of plug-in vehicles. As it stands the credits are not permanent, and are scheduled to phase out during the calendar year after an automaker sells 200,000 EVs and/or PHEVs. Tesla and General Motors have already reached that milestone, and their credits are now down to $1,850 each. They’ll go away entirely on Tesla models on December 31, and March 31, 2020 for electrified GM vehicles. Nissan is likely to be the next automaker to see its credits wane, based on sales of the Leaf.
According to the OC&C survey, the higher cost of electrified rides is indeed a key barrier to widespread EV adoption, especially among younger buyers already burdened with sky-high student loan balances. That makes financial incentives, whether tax credits or cash rebates, a key element in furthering the technology. The report cites California’s generous financial incentives (not to mention regulations mandating automakers sell zero-emissions vehicles) definitely giving battery-powered vehicles a boost, with the Golden State accounting for 50 percent of all electric car sales in the U.S.
“While the evolution of the way we transport people and goods is a key pillar in the race to de-carbonize transportation, the younger generation in the U.S. are constrained by their finances in purchasing greener EV and hybrid vehicles,” says Nicholas Farhi, a US-based partner at OC&C Strategy Consultants specializing in the automotive industry. “Dwindling incentives and static or loosening emission standards have failed to push more Americans to consider electric vehicles.”
