EV Purchase Consideration Ebbs While Charging Concerns Continue to Grow, J.D. Power Finds
May 16 2024 - 7:00AM
Business Wire
Lack of Affordable EVs and Poor Knowledge
of Incentives Compound Problems
Consumer demand for electric vehicles (EVs) has cooled as the
industry grapples with persistent growing pains, according to the
J.D. Power 2024 U.S. Electric Vehicle Consideration (EVC) Study,SM
released today. For the first time since the study’s inception in
2021, new-vehicle buyer consideration has dropped from the previous
year. This year’s study reveals that 24% of shoppers say they are
“very likely” to consider purchasing an EV, down from 26% a year
ago, while the percentage of shoppers who say they are “overall
likely” to consider purchasing an EV decreases to 58% from 61% in
2023.
“As the industry inches toward mass consumer adoption, the main
roadblocks to getting consumers behind the wheel of an EV are the
continued shortage of affordable vehicles, charging concerns and a
lack of knowledge regarding the EV ownership proposition, including
incentives,” said Stewart Stropp, executive director of EV
intelligence at J.D. Power. “As understanding of EV incentives
rises, so does the likelihood of consideration. However,
approximately 40% of shoppers say they do not have a solid
understanding of such incentives. Prioritizing initiatives and
efforts to educate consumers about the EV proposition—including
available incentives and how they work—is vital to accelerating
market growth.”
Other factors contributing to waning EV demand include lower
year-over-year fuel prices; stubborn inflation and high interest
rates; and underwhelming growth in model availability. “In previous
years, the number of viable EVs that met shoppers’ needs increased
substantially year over year,” Stropp said. “This year, it’s been
more incremental. Several automakers have deferred EV launch and
production plans and have shifted more focus toward hybrids and
plug-in hybrids, so we’re seeing a lot of shoppers who still
haven’t found an EV that checks all the boxes.”
Following are some key findings of the 2024 study:
- “Very likely” EV consideration drops among Gen Z1 and Gen Y
shoppers: The lack of affordable EV models is affecting the two
youngest buyer cohorts, Gen Z and Gen Y, with “very likely”
consideration down 2 and 5 percentage points year over year,
respectively. Still, 24% of Gen Z and 32% of Gen Y shoppers say
they are “very likely” to consider an EV, the two highest ratios
among all the generational cohorts.
- Top five reasons for EV rejection mostly related to
charging: Among shoppers who say they are “somewhat unlikely”
or “very unlikely” to consider an EV, 52% cite a lack of charging
station availability as a reason for rejection—the highest
proportion in the study. This figure has increased 3 percentage
points year over year, a sign that concerns about public charging
infrastructure are only getting worse. Other reasons for rejection
include purchase price; limited driving distance per charge; time
required to charge; and inability to charge at home or work.
- Drivers with longer commutes less inclined to consider
EVs: Previous-year studies noted that owners who drove more
miles each day were more likely to consider an EV. Now, with fuel
prices coming down and charging anxiety on the rise, that trend has
reversed. Among shoppers whose daily commute is 46-60 minutes each
way, only 24% say they are “very likely” to consider an EV—down 13
percentage points from 2023.
- Role of pending vehicle influences consideration: Among
shoppers who are looking to add another vehicle to their household,
68% say they are “overall likely” to consider an EV. Conversely,
among those who will be relying solely on one vehicle for
transportation, only 47% say they are “overall likely” to consider
an EV. Without a second vehicle, shoppers tend to be more critical
of the logistics related to EV ownership.
The U.S. Electric Vehicle Consideration (EVC) Study is an
industry benchmark focusing on gauging fully electric or battery
electric vehicle shopper consideration, simply referred to as EVs
in the study. Study content includes overall EV consideration by
geography; demographics; vehicle experience and use; lifestyle; and
psychographics. It also includes model-level consideration details
such as “why buy” findings and analysis of reasons for EV
rejection. This year’s study measures responses from 8,179
consumers and was fielded from January through April 2024.
For more information about the U.S. Electric Vehicle
Consideration (EVC) Study, visit
https://www.jdpower.com/business/automotive/electric-vehicle-consideration-study.
See the online press release at
http://www.jdpower.com/pr-id/2024043.
About J.D. Power
J.D. Power is a global leader in automotive data and
analytics, and provides industry intelligence, consumer insights
and advisory solutions to the automotive industry and selected
non-automotive industries. J.D. Power leverages its extensive
proprietary datasets and software capabilities combined with
advanced analytics and artificial intelligence tools to help its
clients optimize business performance.
J.D. Power was founded in 1968 and has offices in North America,
Europe and Asia Pacific. To learn more about the company's business
offerings, visit JDPower.com/business. The J.D. Power auto-shopping
tool can be found at JDPower.com.
About J.D. Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules:
http://www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info
1 J.D. Power defines generational groups as Pre-Boomers (born
before 1946); Boomers (1946-1964); Gen X (1965-1976); Gen Y
(1977-1994); and Gen Z (1995-2006). Millennials (1982-1994) are a
subset of Gen Y.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240516556498/en/
Geno Effler, J.D. Power; West Coast; 714-621-6224;
media.relations@jdpa.com Shane Smith; East Coast; 424-903-3665;
ssmith@pacificcommunicationsgroup.com