Amid the announcement of Tesla’s record numbers for 2020, in which the manufacturer of electric cars manufactures and delivers half a million vehicles during a pandemic, it seems that the American public is almost ready to accept the EV revolution. This was highlighted in a survey conducted by Consumer Reports, and it revealed that US car buyers are almost ready to accept the Age of Tesla and EVs.
Consumer Reports’ latest nationally representative survey on electric cars has shown that public perception of EVs is taking steps towards the mainstream. While only about 30% of respondents to the survey said they are particularly familiar with electric cars, almost all of the participants at least heard of EVs. Interest in electric cars was extremely high, with 71% of US drivers saying they would consider buying an electric car in the future.
Nearly a third of respondents indicated that they are interested in purchasing an electric car for their next car. More than 70% of the respondents to the study also agreed that electric vehicles would be better for the environment, and that car manufacturers should offer more vehicle types such as electric pickups and SUVs with their cars.
Overall, the results of the Consumer Reports survey show that consumers are now becoming increasingly aware of electric cars. And while there are still concerns about challenges such as the availability of charging stations on the road, Chris Harto, senior analyst at CR Sustainability Policy, noted that the use of public charging stations is actually very rare for a large number of owners of electric motors.
‘US drivers are used to having access to gas stations, and may not realize that if they have a personal garage or driveway, they will do most of their charging work at home with an EV. “Although we found that the typical driver would make as few as six stops at a public charging station each year, a more robust network of fast charging stations would help alleviate buyers’ concerns about switching to an electric vehicle.” Harto said.
Amid this shift, the progress and growth of companies like Tesla has been invaluable in fueling the revolution in electric vehicles. Tesla’s Supercharger Network, for one, was founded and run at a time when the company was producing only one vehicle, and in a very limited number. But years ago, the Supercharger Network was one of the most convenient and reliable fast charging systems in the country. And considering that Tesla is only getting more aggressive with its Supercharger ramp, it looks like the fast-charging system could be opened up for other EVs as well.
What is quite remarkable is that the EV revolution now goes much further than Tesla. While Tesla is still poised to lead the market, thanks to its lead in battery technology and software, other compelling electric cars are also being released by other carmakers. There’s Rivian with its R1T pickup and R1S SUV, both designed to make headlines in the luxury adventure market. Lucid Motors’ Air sedan comes for luxury vehicles such as the Mercedes-Benz S-Class. Even old-fashioned carmakers like Volkswagen are making a serious bet on electric vehicles, as evidenced by the efforts of Herbert Diess, a well-known ally of Elon Musk, of VW.
As electric motors become mainstream and vehicles such as Model 3 and Model Y become more feasible, the reasons for sticking with the internal combustion engine decrease significantly. As many regions such as Europe and China want to ban ICE cars in the coming years, vehicles with gas and diesel will only be less coercive. In the midst of this decline, electric vehicles like Tesla’s range will only become more and more attractive.
EV-Survey-2020-Fact-Sheet-12.16.20-3 by Simon Alvarez on Scribd
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