Switching to electric cars… American challenges

2024-01-19 11:17:05

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The Biden administration’s efforts to encourage increasing numbers of Americans to buy electric cars are falling short of expectations, as consumers complain about prices, battery range, and a lack of charging stations.

In fact, electric car sales in the United States are still experiencing rapid growth, as they rose by more than 50% in 2023 compared to 2022. But automakers say that growth has slowed in recent months, which prompted them to reduce their production plans and temporarily stop some investments. . In this context, Michelle Krebs, a specialized sector analyst at Cox Automotive, said: “Automakers have moved from a rosy picture to reality, because consumer acceptance has become slower. Therefore, it is thinking about slowing down the pace of launching its cars.

She added that the transition to electric vehicles “will not take the form of a straight line and there will be many bumps in the road.” According to data provider J.D. Power, 869,000 electric cars were sold in the United States during the first ten months of 2023, which represents an increase of 56 percent, compared to the same period in 2022. However, this growth rate represented a slowdown from what was previously reported. It was two years ago, and it was below the expectations of some automakers.

In this context, Ford Chief Financial Officer John Lawler said last October: “The narrative has spread that the electric vehicle sector is not growing, but it is growing,” adding, “All there is is that it is growing at a slower pace than the automobile sector, and frankly, we expected that”. The Biden administration says it wants half of new car sales by 2030 to be zero-emission vehicles, which it defines as fully electric cars and hybrids.

As of last November, these models represented 10.8% of new car sales in the United States, the bulk of which were fully electric, according to J.D. Power. However, electric car experts believe that the goal set by the White House can still be achieved if consumers see progress soon on the availability of charging capabilities – something that is expected to happen as federally supported chargers begin to appear in the coming months.

In this context, Mark Jacobson, a renewable energy expert and professor of engineering at Stanford University, points out that buyers also need more information about the savings they will achieve in the cost of switching to an electric car. He says: “Given that driving an electric car allows the average driver to save “Between $20,000 and $30,000 over 15 years in fuel costs alone, I think the only thing holding back consumer demand is the lack of information about this.”

Meanwhile, the Biden administration says that electric vehicle sales have tripled since President Biden took office, and points to research showing that 51 percent of Americans questioned this year were considering purchasing an electric car, compared to 38 percent two years ago.

Thanks to federal subsidies, the country is now on track to add 500,000 new charging stations by 2026, administration officials say. White House spokesman Angelo Fernandez Hernandez said in a statement: “An increasing number of Americans are buying electric cars every day – as sales of electric cars have risen faster than traditional gasoline-powered cars – as the president’s investment agenda in America makes electric cars It is affordable, helps Americans save money when driving, and makes charging electric cars available and convenient.”

However, Ford and General Motors were among the automakers that reduced their production of electric cars and postponed investments in recent weeks amid slowing sales. Last October, General Motors said that “slowing growth in the near term” led the company to cancel its goal of producing 400,000 electric cars by the middle of next year, and postpone the start of production of electric trucks at a factory in Lake Orion, Michigan. General Motors added that it will maintain the flexibility of its manufacturing to produce gasoline-powered cars or electric cars, according to demand.

Last month, Mary Barra, CEO of General Motors, stressed the need for a stronger charging network to overcome consumer fears, especially since studies conducted by J.D. Power showed that drivers feel frustrated due to the lack of charging stations or the malfunction of those stations. Which is often available. According to JB Power electric vehicle expert Elizabeth Krier, about 1 in 5 charging attempts fail, and about 1 in 3 electric vehicle buyers do not have access to home charging.

Jane Wallen*

*A journalist specializing in trade issues

*Published by special arrangement with the Washington Post Licensing and Syndication Service.

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