I seriously think these companies are insane. They’re doing things to impress a certain monetary demographic without seeing how many of those folks exist. Without taking literally anybody else into consideration.
Not just the companies, but the federal government, at least in the US, only comes up with income tax credits instead of instant rebates. So first you need to be able to take the immediate hit of the original purchase price, plus you need to have made enough money to pay at least $7500 in federal income taxes to gain the benefit of the full amount.
Yes this too. They go out and try to say “oh but there’s a credit” but they make it hard to even get the credit in the first place. So it’s great that the Mach-E is eligible for the $7500 credit but that’s not gonna do me a bit of good even if I could barely afford it.
There really need to be entry level vehicles (anyone else old enough to remember loss-leader pricing in the auto industry) to get enough people to try out EVs. Instead, we have the geniuses at GM killing the Bolt (are there any other cheaper EVs??) to make bigger (and costlier) vehicles. Not to mention the brain dead idea of not supporting Car Play and Android Auto.
Prices have been too high for too long. People aren’t just looking at EVs; they’re looking at the market as a whole. You do have to put up with some compromises with EVs regarding road tripping that were never a worry with ICE, and combined with the starting price being so high for the vast majority of less-compromising entries in the market, it’s priced a lot of people out. Not everyone can justify bumping up their purchase budgets indefinitely, even if an EV represents a long-term savings over ICE refueling and maintenance. Not to mention, it’s not until 2024 that the federal tax credit can apply to us Poors™ who don’t have anywhere near $7500 of federal tax burden (and even then, it’s up to the dealer to offer that discount upfront). Given the economy right now, rent prices up, interest rates way up, people not earning that much more, AND student loans are coming back into repayment without the forgiveness people were hoping for? There’s not a lot happening right now that would help the average person justify spending so much on a new car.
Demand is there, IMO, it’s just not huge for >$40k EVs. I’ve been sitting around waiting for the market to move forward and it’s only just now starting to react somewhat. Maybe in the next couple years we start seeing EVs becoming actually competitive - not just with each other, but with the general car-buying public. There’s still a majority of holdouts in the EV space desperately clinging to the notion that a few fancy gizmos on an otherwise fairly standard vehicle will lure in buyers with big wallets to spend $10k or more above what these vehicles should cost, and we’re clearly moving past the early adopters willing to pay the ‘shiny new thing’ tax. As newer models are shown off with industry-leading specs at lower prices, it’s becoming clear that it’s not just Tesla who can offer a decent value (sometimes).
Supply has caught up. People aren’t forced to wait for ages on a waitlist for an EV anymore. A year ago, a used EV cost the same or more than new, and now that used prices have dropped substantially, it’s no longer a seller’s market. People can demand more from their EV purchase.
I’d love to get an EV. I rarely use my current car since I started working remote full time during the COVID shutdown. My wife and I have already discussed going down to one car between the two of us and that seems plausible. I have a motorcycle which helps.
Every time I even glance at an EV the large price tag is unjustifiable especially since I have no car payment. Something cheap, reliable, and can fit sports equipment with moderate range would be plenty.
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