Buyer interest in EVS rises
The phones were ringing one morning at Ontario Hyundai in California’s Inland Empire, and the callers had one thing in mind – an electric vehicle.
Before 10 a.m., the dealership had received 20 inquiries about Hyundai’s new electric crossover, the Ioniq 5. The dealership always gets a few dozen calls a day about EVS but never 20 in the first hour, said General Manager Sam Labib.
Labib had one explanation: high gas prices. It’s something that has been seen nationally as well. Edmunds, which has an online research site for car shoppers, said its “on-site shopper consideration of green vehicle (hybrid, plug-in hybrid and battery electric)” jumped 39% in the last month.
But EVS aren’t expected to suddenly supplant gas-powered vehicles any time soon even though they continue to grow as a share of the market. Green vehicles can be hard to come by right now, according to analysts, thanks, in part, to cost and supply chain challenges. Some brands have waiting lists.
“Unfortunately, making an EV purchase is not particularly easy to do right now amid inventory shortages, and price-sensitive consumers most affected by gas price hikes will likely find that making the switch is also a bit out of financial reach due to the premiums that these vehicles command,” according to Jessica Caldwell, Edmunds’ executive director of insights.
The average transaction price for a new EV hit $60,054 in February, which was $1,820 higher than the sticker price, according to Edmunds. The average transaction price for new vehicles, including EVS, was $45,596 in February. Both price points put new vehicles out of range for many consumers.