Featured Reasons behind the slowness of EVs adoption in US

Why is it slow in the US? Because the distances to be traveled occasionally by the typical family are longer than in some other countries with higher adoption rates. Look at a map. What is Australia's adoption rate (comparing a country of similar size)? Also people in the US tend to live lots further from where they grew up, where their friends and families are.

 

When once outside that box, people find more reasons that make a plug in desirable than they did with hybrids.

The plug in selection needs to expand for their success. It is what kept the hybrid segment from tanking in the US.

That, and the cost issue, will be addressed with time. Automoblies weren't cheap when they first arrived, and the Model T didn't show up until 22 years after the first car. It has only been about a decade since the BEV's rebirth, and Tesla is successfully competing on price and performance in the high end/luxury segments.

The typical family in the US has a choice of cars to use for those occasional trips. We can't pin down adoption speed to a single variable, and even comparing one between markets can be tough.

Take Australia. While it is a sizable country with open spaces, its people drive less per year than Americans; only about 15.5k kilometers year, which is under 10k miles. The typical commute distance is shorter too. They are more likely to fly between major cities than drive it like Americans. Their lower adoption of plug ins could be explained by lower support in terms of incentives, and possible lack of selection. They never got the PiP for instance.
Australian motorists drive an average 15,530km per year - Roy Morgan Research
2071.0.55.001 - Census of Population and Housing: Commuting to Work - More Stories from the Census, 2016
Electric car use by country - Wikipedia

 

but really, is there anywhere to go in australia? do they have a national highway system like ours?

 

October/beer-fest?

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Well, let's look at the facts based on experience. My PiP has a gas tank that holds about 10 gallons. I haven't seen the tank but I have a good idea of how big a 10 gallon bucket is. It has a traction battery that is roughly the same size as the gas tank. Using the gas tank I have about a 400 mile range and need maybe ten minutes to fill it up again when it runs low.

Using the traction battery I have about a ten mile range and I would need 30 - 90 minutes to fill it back up, assuming I could find someplace where they would allow me to plug in. I won't say that one is inferior if you don't want me too, but one of these technologies makes me fast and highly mobile, and the other is, ah "promising".

Kangaroo tours. They have magnificent kangaroo tours. And there are wallabies in the off-season too!

This is like asking if the poultry vendors in my town get together with the fish merchants to harmonize prices. Why would they?

 

It's very simple and there is no need to over-think this. US drivers for the most part (and this is key!) love trucks and SUVs. The bigger and more wasteful, the better. These drivers don't usually care about environment unless it effects the environment of their wallet. Many think the Earth is pancake shaped. Many live in cities where charging at home is not a possibility. Many need more range than 300 miles (think Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Dakotas, etc.). I think it's pretty clear that BEVs are not ready for prime time in US. Not yet, anyway. Are they awesome? Sure, but to you and me, not the greater US driver base.

As for slow Prius adaption, that's easy too. The extra cost of that car when new did not play well with gas savings at the time of introduction. When the gas prices spiked to where the hybrid premium started to approach parity with gas savings over the time of ownership the adoption picked right up, but then the gas prices fell and adoption dropped. It is very simple. Money talks, bull crap walks. This is US of A, dammit! We love to burn stuff!

 

This article is in line with my opinion. It's money. Cost to the buyer, low to no "incentive" cash, profit margins for the auto makers and commissions to the dealer network and salespeople. AND range anxiety. Where day-to-day driving needs may be met by a BEV, I expect my car to be flexible in range and use. I refuse to rent a car to take a trip. A BEV will NOT fit my requirements for several years.

 

I have a 2017 Prius Prime with an 11.3 gallon tank and with the 25 mi EV battery, 640 mi range at 65-70 mph. It has been a nice car but it is my trade-in for a 220 mi Standard Range Model 3.

The Standard Range Model 3 (SR Model 3) can go one one full charge, 220 mi at 65-70 mph. So what happens when I go to Stillwater OK or Coffeyville KS:

• ~220 mi @65-70 mph, 3 hrs - headed to Memphis TN directly or via Tupelo MS.
  • SuperCharger for ~0.5-0.7 hr
  • ~180 mi @65-70 mph, ~2.5 hr headed to next SuperCharger
  • Repeat last two steps until arrival, 180 mi / 3 hr ~= 60 mph

With the Prime, I could drive the 700 miles with just one fuel stop. But with my wife and her dogs, I'd still be stopping every hour or so. I know because we did the trip already in our BMW i3-REx on the gas engine. But these are my requirements and others may have a greater need for speed.

Many years ago, a diesel advocate came to PriusChat complaining about 'terrible Gen-2 Prius MPG performance.' It turns out he was cruising at 80-85 mph so I was relieved when he returned to a TDI Jetta.

Bob Wilson

 

A case can be made that they were pushed into the light truck market because light trucks were exempt from cafe regulations, because the cafe cars were fuel efficient, but they bored people to tears. Thus the migration over to anything that still had a real engine...

 

Australia's population is pretty concentrated in pretty small areas when compared to the land mass. It's like Arizona. Most people in AZ live within 80 miles of the majority of its residents. Unless they go to LA or Las Vegas, not many miles to where most people drive.

Bingo! Plus with a BEV there is no advantage in mileage when the fuel is used. That battery still weighs just about the same, crippling the advantage of load lightening in petrol autos. This will be even more pronounced with BETs (Battery Electric Trucks) with the "fuel" weighing in at 10 to 20 thousand pounds (plus the atomic weight of a few electrons).

 

2012 Pip, ten mile battery. 2017 Pip, 25 mile battery. Progress is being made, but battery technology is still the critical limiting factor.

 

individual experiences are great, but they don't speak for the 95% of drivers who aren't currently interested in electric cars.

 

Well 95% is often considered an A+.

Bob Wilson

 

Isn't it more like 98%?

 

depends ..... which country ... versus worldwide ... versus US .... versus pertol availabity at any given time.
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Yeah, probably hard to nail down, but the point is, most people just aren’t interested, and it will take time and incentives

 

Part of the problem is frustrating long time for model development.
For example, we'd all like to see a Prime with same cargo space as a Prius, but at the moment what is available is Prius hybrid frame not optimized to hide a 8 kWRhr battery. So if you do not need 5 seats and cargo space, which some do not, then you are good to go.

 

This would seem to contradict your statement:
20% of Americans Say Their Next Car Will Be Electric: AAA | Fortune
And that was a year ago, so odds are it's a little higher now.

 

yes - with the plugin Prime you get less gas usage, less seating, less cargo space, & less EV range for less $$ -
With a Clarity - you more of all those ..... tradeoffs.
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'Dewey defeats Truman!'

americans say a lot of things. unfortunately, they don't always follow through. talk is cheap, time will tell.
i'm betting against it.
how many years to you forecast it will take for americans to buy their next car?