The Electric Vehicle (EV) discussion thread (Merged)

You say these things - but they don’t really hold up examination, which suggests that these are feelings more than thoughtful analysis. That’s fine, you’re entitled to have feelings, but the reality is far more nuanced than what appears to be feelings you have about it . . . for whatever reason.

The average price of a new ICE car sold in the United States right now is $47,218. The average price of a new EV sold in the US is $53,758. The top 5 most popular EV cars sold in the US right now have models priced under the average ICE car price, including the popular Tesla Model 3 ($38,990) and the Hyundai Ioniq-5 ($41,650). People are spending big money on new cars, both ICE and EV - new cars are just expensive these days.

Another data point you reference is people whose living arrangements don't allow for home charging. If you look at the numbers, about 2/3 (67%) of Americans live in single-family homes - where adding a home charge-point is not only viable but cost effective. On top of that, it is estimated that about 5% of residential complexes have charging available . . . yes, it's a low number but it is something that is happening and likely to grow in availability. The idea that home charging is not available to most Americans is just plain inaccurate.

What is a far more sensible explanation is that EV is new and adoption is slow. Yes, for large segments of the US population EV is not appealing - for many of them that is due to practical reasons (like they actually do need the range) but for many others it is due to either ignorance or prejudice . . . both of which are real and simply part of how a large market operates. There are human factors at play to be sure.

But to think that the EV share of the US market has been growing steadily - and will simply stop at 5 to 10% because feelings is not persuasive. I think it all continues to grow, perhaps more slowly at times and more rapidly at times - and that growth will include new models, new technology, new developments in range and charging availability. And it will include, necessarily, new buyers.



https://clark.com/cars/average-new-car-price/
https://www.findmyelectric.com/blog/electric-car-prices/

https://www.statista.com/topics/5144/single-family-homes-in-the-us/
I think it misses many factors too such as younger generations do not idolize cars like older ones. Something like 25% don't drive and I recall Ford as far back as 2007 admitting they have no idea how to build a car they desire.

I see them as a good target for a fleet of self driving ev Ubers. I think many realize it's cheaper pay for a car service than own a car in urban settings.

I would not be surprised if the ultimate plan is CAAS (car as a service) modeled like the ZIP cars here in downtown BR. It's 35$ a year to sign up and 9$ per hour to use last I checked. Compare that to insurance, registration, maintenance, parking costs etc, and it is quickly a much better deal to use a resource only at point of need.