Poll: Two-thirds of Americans unwilling to pay premium for electric vehicles

Too bad they didn't take that poll when gas was $4 a gallon. The results would have been reversed.

 

Does that mean that 17% are willing to pay. For the volt that is actually good news, since chevy's goal is 50,000-100,000 cars after the first year of 5000-10000 in america. For the leaf with a goal of 500,000 cars a year it is quite bad news. But actually it isn't news at all as most marketers knew the figures before the polls.

 

In this case, polls are entertainment. The future of mass produced electric cars is going to be determined by economics.....and the economics of the next ten years are anyone's guess. It should be noted that the economics will eventually clearly favor electric cars, so some will be smart and get an early (or extremely early) start.

 

Agree.

Since when is $5,000 "even a slight"? Are there any journalists left in this country?

 

'Slight' refers to the roughly one-third (actual portion not stated) unwilling to pay even a slight premium, not the smaller portion (17%) willing to pay a large premium.

I read this as suggesting that potential demand still greatly exceeds near-term supply.

 

it's just like with food. if you want people to eat healthy then you can put a $3 salad next to a $1 cheeseburger. it's expected that new technology will cost more for a while, but look at the prius. you can get one very reasonably priced now.

 

I am not surprised by the outcome, but as mentioned above, polls are for entertainment.

Eventually, and possibly sooner than later, we will all be paying a higher price ... especially as more EV's take to the roads. The price will be in the form of taxes ..... with deminished income from gasoline taxes, states and the fed will find other ways to collect revenue. Imagine the difficulty in assessing a fair and accurate mileage tax.

Another aspect that I have not read anyone mentioning .... not only is the Volt a very pricy vehicle to purchase ..... but the higher personal property tax will have an additional impact year after year. Might government assess higher taxes on EV's to offset lost gasoline revenue???

 

Yawnnnnn...Volt sales will demographically look exactly the same as the Prius. Expect a modicum of affluent buyers, however, because most people who wanted a hybrid already own a Prius. Only the zealots (maybe I can name a few on this forum) will be likely to buy one.

 

If you check out hybrid sales they are less than 3%. Volt sales will provide a younger demographic than the prius, and will the driver will have a shorter commute than the average anti-volt prius chat commentator. Both Prius and volt projected sales are far lower than surveyed results. I hope that choices increase the portion of the population using more efficient cars.

 

omg... u all appear to be under the impression that the average American knows whats good for themselves...

oh my...

 

How do you figure that? And don't tell me because the Volt "looks cooler." It's way more expensive than the Prius and just as slow.

 

What I glean from this poll is that at least 2/3 of Americans are likely UNABLE to buy a car that costs > $20K, let alone with a premium attached. We just had a pretty substantial correction in the amount of "money" floating around out there that has resulted in lost and reduced incomes, savings, retirement...and in many more cases, a likely permanent reduction in standard of living...not to mention a lot of soul searching about finances in general. I believe that people largely like the idea of a clean car just as they like the taste of a gourmet dinner, but all of that is moot. If they can't pay the tab and do everything else that they need to be doing with their money, then they aren't in the market.

 

yes, actually, they do.

 

well, that's not really fair. you're argument sounds like you're making the prius and tahoe out to be on a level playing field. if i want a tahoe, a prius simply won't do, and vice versa. you're getting a whole lot more vehicle in a tahoe, so you expect to pay for it. i think the part about paying a premium would be more accurate when comparing vehicles in the same class. like, a hybrid escape vs. a regular escape.

 

This is a rather ignorant statement. I hate when people purchase luxury cars to try to "buy class" as much as anyone, but you shouldn't judge someone based on what they drive. Otherwise you're giving them exactly what they want. I work with several people who drive awful looking beater cars and earn hundreds of thousands of dollars.

 

I get there by looking at the prius demographics, which are quite old, I think average age is in the mid 50s. I feel way young on this forum.

Then I look at the volt projected demographics. Now these could be quite wrong, but you have to ask yourself how many of those old people skewing the prius age up are going to value 17" rims or a smart phone app to precondition the temperature.

The demographic shift of volt buyers to the pc complainers is even simpler. Most of the complainers talk about driving much further than the average driver. I expect volt buyers will prefer the $350/mo 3 year lease and be rational enough to self select for the car choice. This lease rate should not prevent drivers in there 20s and 30s from buying a phev.

From the reviews many drivers may prefer the 1 second faster to 60 acceleration and the quieter cabin. When leasing the perceived superior quality of Toyota to gm is less of a factor.