By Mike Sheldrick, Senior Editor
July 19, 2022
It’s virtually all but certain that EVs will constitute the majority of auto sales in a decade or so — maybe even dominate. Adoption will take longer because many owners, quite naturally, will hold on to their ICs as long as cost the cost of ownership remains lower. For example, gasoline prices could fall as demand falls.
The changeover to EVs may happen a lot faster among fleets. Why? Because the TCO of EVs will eventually outperform ICs — by a lot. It just won’t be the lower price of fuel. Think simplified engines, no transmission, less lubrication, and longer brake life thanks to regenerative braking. If automakers go back to body-on-frame construction, the passenger compartment could be replaced.
This is happening already. According to Recurrent Auto, which tracks all aspects of EV batteries in actual use across the auto industry, used EVs outpaced the price increases in used cars by 12% in the last quarter. Part of the reason is the stratospheric increase in gas prices, but there is increasing recognition by buyers of the inherent superiority of EVs vs ICs in most vehicles.
Recurrent notes in their Q3 2022 Used Electric Car Market Report that some consumers are flipping their used EVs for a handsome profit. Owners of a 2021 Mustang Mach-E can fetch between $10,000 to $20,000 over last year’s sticker price of between $45,000 and $60,000. 2021 Tesla Model 3 buyers did as well or better.
Automakers have taken steps to clamp down on that, and to be sure, it’s a classic case of too much money chasing too few goods, but it is also a measure of the growing consumer interest in EVs.
