Why EVs Are ‘Piling Up’ at Dealerships, Despite Massive Taxpayer Subsidies

“About 92,000 EVs currently sit on dealers’ lots; that's a 342% increase from a year ago, when only about 21,000 did so, according to automotive research firm Cox Automotive.”

Source: Why EVs Are ‘Piling Up’ at Dealerships, Despite Massive Taxpayer Subsidies - Foundation for Economic Education

There are a lot of great things about electric cars. However, they aren't some universal panacea. They can't replace all fossil fuel based cars and they are not affordable for all people. In addition, electric cars aren't necessarily that much better for the environment.

When I purchased my last car, I seriously considered an electric car. Our family needs two vehicles but one of them could certainly be used primarily for around town driving that is ideal for electric vehicles. The problem is that an electric car just had too much of a price premium. In theory, it will pay for itself via gas and maintenance savings but those savings have to accumulate for in the neighborhood of a decade (obviously this is somewhat dependent on your particular driving habits) before they make up for the up front premium. That's just too long to matter for most people, especially when many are paying interest on a car loan. There are subsidies but if you are someone who would struggle with the additional up-front cost of an electric vehicle then you are likely not someone who the subsidies would apply to anyway because you probably aren't paying enough taxes to take full (if any) advantage of them.

Also, an electric car is not better in certain common circumstances. If you do a lot of long distance driving for instance. While charger availability is getting better, it is nothing compared to the convenience of a gas station. You also don't have to stop as long with a gas powered car (though that is improving on the electric side also). In addition, if you need a larger vehicle for any reason, whether that's a truck for work or just a larger vehicle because you have a larger family, there aren't a lot of great choices in the electric world and the price difference looms even larger.

There's also the issue of the environment. Supposedly, electric cars are better for the environment. While that may be true, the difference isn't is big as you might think. It turns out that electric cars have a higher carbon cost in terms of production. Then there's the environmental damage done by mining for the minerals necessary for the batteries. I don't know how representative this example is but from the article, "In 2021, Volvo admitted that its C40 Recharge has to be driven 70,000 miles before its carbon impact is lower than its gas-powered version." That's not necessarily terrible but it is quite a long time, six or seven years if you are an "average" driver. I know that cars these days can be expected to last up to 200-300,000 miles. However, I'm not sure what the average is.

I don't doubt that one day electric vehicles will replace gas powered vehicles in at least most circumstances. However, it is going to take some more time. Prices will come down and the infrastructure is coming but I'm not sure current battery technology with its reliance on lithium is going to cut it in the long run.