Kategori : ELECTRICITY ENERGY NEWS, ENERGY AGENDA NEWS, GREEN TECHNOLOGY AND INFORMATION NEWS - Tarih : 17 January 2019

There is a lot of buzz (sorry!) around how electric vehicle will soon make up a large share of vehicle sales. While customers seeking a new EV haven’t had a lot of options to date, the range of makes and models will be significantly expanding in the next few dozen months as car makers roll out new lines, including a 400+ mile range 4×4 electric pickup truck that comes with external power outlets and a built in air compressor.

Of the 17.3 million cars and trucks sold in 2017, about 1.2%, or 200,000 of them, were EVs. However, many dealerships appear to be less than enthusiastic about selling them, leading to poor buying experiences and possibly fewer EV total sales. There are multiple reasons for this, including a lack of knowledge and longer sales time, but one major one seems to be that since EVs require less maintenance than conventional vehicles, the dealership service departments stand to lose revenue.

While it might be a downside for dealerships, less maintenance is also one of the biggest selling points of EVs, which cost about one-third per mile to drive (electricity vs. gasoline) and have significantly fewer moving parts. But, since about half of car dealers’ revenue comes from their service departments, and vehicle service is about a $250B per year industry, more EVs could mean billions of dollars in lost service revenue.

Over the recent winter break, my sister and brother in law were looking to buy their first EV. Given their rural location and lack of EV charging infrastructure, they had their eyes on a plug-in hybrid, like a Chevy Volt. However, their experience seemed almost tailored to dissuade them. They went to five dealerships, with no luck. Responses from salespeople included:

“Noooooo! You don’t want one of those, that’s a dinosaur. Let me show you some cars you would rather have.”

“We don’t see those around here much, and frankly don’t want to look for one. We have one we get our mail with and it gets good mileage, but we’re not looking to sell one.”