
Why Americans Don’t Buy Electric Cars (The Tesla Model 3 Isn’t That Popular) - clouddrover
https://www.forbes.com/sites/brookecrothers/2019/09/22/why-americans-dont-buy-electric-cars-hey-the-tesla-model-3-isnt-that-popular/
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perfunctory
> I won’t cite a bunch of statistics (that may seem encouraging but actually
> are not). Just look around you.

Weird article. The author is basically saying I am gonna ignore statistics and
gonna talk about my personal perception.

Statistics linked in the article are actually pretty cool:
[https://www.eei.org/issuesandpolicy/electrictransportation/D...](https://www.eei.org/issuesandpolicy/electrictransportation/Documents/FINAL_EV_Sales_Update_April2019.pdf)

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m463
> Ford’s Cannis cites an interesting statistic: “Forty-two percent of
> Americans think electric vehicles still require gas to run.” That shows how
> little many Americans know about EVs. Or they think all EVs are basically a
> Toyota Prius (which is even worse).

The statistics in your link support this. The Prius shows up as an EV.

I think the term EV is becoming ambiguous, sometimes unintentionally sometimes
intentionally.

Some people want to state sales are higher, so they include BEV + hybrids in
EV numbers.

Some people want to be accurate and describe any car with a battery as an EV.

Some people don't think a car that uses gas is really an EV, or want to report
lower numbers so use BEV numbers.

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elihu
> It’s a PR game. “Look, we’re going all-electric by [insert year]!” Meanwhile
> they keep pushing gas cars.

I suspect this is PR directed mostly at shareholders, not consumers. If a car
company appears to be missing the boat on electric, they're going to look like
a risky investment for the long term.

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simonblack
Until recharging times (around 5 minutes) and range (around 500miles/800km)
can match those of chemical-fueled cars, there will be buyer resistance.

There is a reason that the battery car of the early 1900s and the Stanley
Steamer disappeared. They just couldn't match the day-in day-out utility and
convenience of the petroleum-energy vehicles.

