What’s Stopping Electric Vehicles From Taking Over : A Retrospective Analysis

MANILA: Yes, electric and hybrid vehicles have certainly seen a lot of demand lately due to a number of reasons. Vehicles with electric drivetrain are not only far more fuel efficient than your standard gas guzzler (petrol/diesel cars) but also pose a much lower threat to the beloved atmosphere. We’ve been hearing a lot of environmentalist rage since a couple of years, as we experience continuous erratic weather patterns, with news about hurricanes, droughts and tropical storms all across the globe.

This has led to a global outrage against automobile emission and the automotive industry’s overdependence on fossil fuel that leads to global warming. As a result, we saw a phenomenal industrial shift with the adoption of alternative energy sources and the rise of electric powered passenger vehicles. Despite the various new electric/hybrid vehicles being revealed every month, the market for these cars is moving at a really sluggish pace in other regions. The reality is certainly quite contrary as petrol and diesel driven vehicles see an even higher demand in other regions. But what has led to this strange reaction from the automotive buyers in the globe? Let’s take a closer look.

1. US and UK Success Is a Sham

You cannot hope to have a successful market for electric vehicles when the gas prices are as low as USD 1.50/gallon. Electric vehicles might be extremely fuel efficient and can provide more miles, but with such low gas prices, there’s no reason why the average consumer would find the necessity for such a shift.

2. Electricity Isn’t As Available As Gas

It would be easy to think that buying an electric vehicle would solve a lot of problems with refueling, but in reality, it is much harder to find a charging station as compared to a gas station. The low crude oil prices and lack of charging stations for electric/hybrid vehicles is one of the major reasons why people refrain from buying such vehicles.

3. Electric Vehicles Are For The Rich

Like how every new Apple product is sold at an exorbitant price, same is the case when it comes to electric/hybrid vehicles. It would certainly be logical to sell the product at an affordable price if you’re looking to attract more buyers. But that certainly doesn’t seem to be logical enough for most automotive manufacturers across the globe as electric/hybrid vehicles continue to bear premium price tags. One surely can’t trust anyone in this capitalist world!

4. Oxymoronic Government Policies

No matter how much we try, but increasing taxes on electric engines further hampers their sales. While the government keeps strict tabs on vehicular emission levels and try to promote the use of clean energy, most authorities categorize electric cars in the same vein as luxury cars. As a result these vehicles are always sold at higher prices treating their more efficient engine like it was a start/stop button.

But when we talk about the real figures less than 500,000 electric vehicles were sold globally last year, quite contrary to the industrial prediction of a million units. This has turned into a major problem for the automotive industry as buyers and markets continue to resist this much-needed change. The future is certainly ‘Electric’ and we’d love to get electrified, provided these above loopholes are patched.