Study Says The Same Problems Faced By The EV1 Remain Today

When GM launched the EV1 over two decades ago, consumers cited three major problems with electric vehicles: charging station availability, driving range and purchase price.

Fast forward to today and guess what consumers say is the biggest problem with electric vehicles? Charging station availability, driving range and purchase price.

While a lot has changed since the introduction of the EV1, consumers are still skeptical about electric vehicles according to a J.D. Power study. Even people who have owned electric vehicles cited charging station availability, driving range and purchase price as the three biggest barriers hindering adoption.

To make matters worse, the company’s Mobility Confidence Index for electric vehicles remained at 55 out of 100 for the fourth consecutive quarter. In Canada, the number actually dropped from 59 to 57.

While the study included owners of electric vehicles, it found that most people have little experience or knowledge about them. 70% of American and 67% of Canadian respondents have never been in an electric vehicle and 30% of Americans said they know nothing about them.

Despite the knowledge and experience gap, approximately 30% of respondents said they might purchase an electric vehicle in the next four years. On the flip side, approximately the same percentage said they have no intention of buying one. More interestingly, some previous EV owners said they wouldn’t buy one again due to costs, limited range and performance in extreme weather – particularly cold.

Consumers aren’t just wary about EVs as they’re even more skeptical about autonomous vehicles. The Mobility Confidence Index for self-driving vehicles fell from 36 to 35 for Americans and 39 to 36 for Canadians. There’s no word on what caused the drop, but declines in support are typically tied to high profile events such as accidents.

Given the lackluster support, J.D. Power’s executive director of driver interaction and human machine interface research, Kristin Kolodge, said “We’re concerned for automakers” as “they’re pushing forward with technology that consumers seem to have little interest in.” Kolodge also said companies are “investing billions in these technologies but they need to also invest in educating consumers” as “lack of knowledge is a huge roadblock for future adoption.”