This quarter, CarGurus released the results from its annual survey of automobile owners on their sentiments towards electric vehicles (EVs). It’s the second year the online survey has been conducted, and the results show that EVs continue to pose a huge opportunity for dealerships, especially with younger shoppers.
Read on for the key findings from the CarGurus 2022 Electric Vehicle Study.
Excitement for EVs has increased since last year
Compared to 2021, more people say they expect to own an EV in the next decade. Younger consumers are especially excited about the prospect of owning an EV — over 2 in 3 car owners between the ages of 18 and 29 expect to own an EV in the next 10 years. The target audience for EVs is expanding though, as the largest gains versus last year came from older shoppers.
Tax incentives and more charging stations are the answer for many
There are still a variety of barriers keeping consumers from making the switch to electric. Buyers say they could be best convinced to go electric for three reasons: if they were offered tax incentives, there were more charging stations available, and cost parity with ICE vehicles. Until then, consumers feel that many of their potential driving scenarios seem impossible with today’s charging infrastructure and that EVs aren’t worth the high prices.
Hybrid vehicles lack the long-term promise of EVs in consumers’ eyes
Though the backup fuel source hybrids provide offers some peace of mind for consumers, hybrids aren’t an exciting long-term promise in the eyes of most. More than half of consumers (54%) said they’re neutral on the overall development of hybrid vehicles. Additionally, expected adoption of hybrids in the next decade decreased from 54% last year to only 42% this year.
Consumers are open to a variety of brands when it comes to buying EVs
While Tesla is currently the EV leader, there’s a lot of opportunity for other brands in the alternative fuel space — especially Toyota and Honda. Almost half (47%) of consumers surveyed said they would consider purchasing an EV from Tesla, followed by Toyota (38%) and Honda (29%). Toyota and Honda are at the top of consumers’ lists when it comes to purchasing hybrid vehicles — a space Tesla doesn’t compete in.
The takeaway
While EVs may feel like uncharted territory for dealerships, embracing them in the coming months and years will be crucial to addressing long-term demand and catering to changing buyer preferences down the road.
For more takeaways, download the full CarGurus 2022 Electric Vehicle Insight Report.