Most drivers unsure about making jump to EVs, AAA survey finds

May 20, 2019

A lot of Americans still aren’t jumping toward electric vehicles, as one survey found that about 16 percent are likely to purchase one.

A lot of Americans still aren’t jumping toward electric vehicles, as one survey found that about 16 percent are likely to purchase one.

The survey, conducted by AAA, shows that drivers might be resistant to change. It’s the lack of knowledge about the cars’ performance, range and maintenance that are keeping them in the internal combustion world.

“Today, more than 200,000 electric cars can be found on roads across the country as almost every manufacturer sells them,” said Greg Brannon, AAA’s director of automotive engineering and industry relations, in a press release. “But like other new vehicle technologies, Americans don’t have the full story and that could be causing the gap between interest and action.”

The overall level of interest in EVs stayed about the same when compared to previous surveys, AAA said. Those who were interested skewed younger and wanted to go electric mostly for environmental reasons. Some 67 percent of those likely buyers said they would pay more for it, too.

But the majority of people are still unsure. Fifty- nine percent of respondents to the AAA survey said that they were unsure if EVs have the necessary range for both highway and stop-and-go, urban driving.

About the same percentage of respondents had concerns about finding places to charge the cars.

Roughly the same number of people felt that most cars will be electric in 10 years (42 percent) as those who didn’t think that would happen (45 percent).

Still, fewer people held those concerns in AAA’s 2019 survey than in 2018. The percentage of respondents at odds with EV purchase price, battery repair or replacement, driving range and charging stations fell when compared to the previous year.