What’s the Biggest Reason Why People Want EVs?
Hannah DeWitt
· 4 min read
Electric vehicles
(EVs) are on the rise after many years of low sales numbers and little investment. Car manufacturers are starting to release more electric models to meet state and national mandates
as well as their own emissions goals.AutoPacific
surveyed vehicle owners and found that 9% of people intend to buy an EV as their next car, up from 4% last year. But why do people finally want EVs? Turns out, there are a lot of reasons, though some may come as a bit of a surprise.
What’s the main reason why people are buying EVs?
There has been speculation that the rise in EV popularity is mainly due to
increasing gas prices
. However, 85% of people said that they were interested in getting an EV because of their positive environmental impact. This reasoning isn’t that shocking, but what’s surprising is that gas prices and EV intention might not be correlated at all.A large portion of people, around 70%, were also looking into EVs because charging is cheaper than filling up with gas. However, AutoPacific reports that prices have been mostly stable as EV demand rose; demand was low for years when gas prices were high.
In short, people are drawn to EVs because they’re cheaper to fuel, but it doesn’t look like gas prices are influencing demand.
A surprising amount of people would switch for convenience
Close to 50% of people said they’re thinking of switching to an EV because charging is more convenient than pumping gas. This is an interesting shift, as one of the largest issues people have had with switching to EVs is the lack of infrastructure, including the availability of charging stations.
People have also been grumbling about charging times for EVs. Though
charging is getting faster
, you’ll still need at least 30 minutes, more than triple the time it takes to pump a standard tank of gas. Hopefully, more buyers will make the switch as EV infrastructure continues to grow.EV ranges have been lower than buyers would prefer, but some manufacturers are improving their mileage to around 400, or even 500 miles per charge. This will likely lessen the immediate need for more charging stations, giving the government some breathing room as they expand the U.S.’s infrastructure.
Which reasons are the least popular?
Other reasons for buying an EV were less popular among those surveyed. Only 26% of people felt like privileges such as using the carpool lane and dedicated parking were good reasons to go electric.
The least popular reason to get an electric car was because of attractive styling, with only 11% of people agreeing that it could influence their decision. Though many EVs have adopted sleek, futuristic looks, the styling would need to be pretty mind-blowing for it to be the main reason someone wanted one.
Along the same lines, Autopacific reported that “the image [an] EV conveys” came in second-to-last with 25%.
As more car dealers increase their EV selection, buying your own EV is getting easier and easier. However, as you decide on the right car for you, you’ll need to find car insurance that fits you too.
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