Moody’s Investor Services has put some numbers on one of the reasons traditional automakers have generally been less than enthusiastic about building electric vehicles. Besides plain old inertia, the resistance to change, building cars powered by electricity is expensive. And, it will continue to be cost companies copious coin into the near-term future.
In fact, the credit rating agency says that even though they expect sales will see strong growth over the next dozen years, accounting for as much as 17 to 19 percent of the market by 2030, automakers are currently losing about $7,000 to $10,000 per vehicle and they will keep losing some amount on them for the next few years.
I suspect that the market for electric cars will not grow to anywhere near the level projected. If the purpose of a car is reliability, mobility and range why would you step back from the better and proven ICE technology we presently use. The only reliable fact about an electric car is that in a short time it will have a dead battery and you will need to spend several hours recharging it.
“…The only reliable fact about an electric car …”
Not so. They are cars, so you can also rely on them having defects in every other part of the vehicle, just like fuel burners.
The last time I paid attention to the economics of electric cars, they were about a third to a half more expensive than the gasoline version. This is full cycle, new to scrap, all costs in, fuel included.
This electric car hype we are now experiencing is so reminiscent of the hydrogen/fuel cell nonsense we heard so much about ten or so years ago. It too will fade in time, to be cast upon the scrap heap of uneconomic ideas. It is too bad that in the meantime, it will provide politicians with the cover for some very wasteful initiatives.
“…automakers are currently losing about $7,000 to $10,000 per vehicle…”
Not true. The shareholders of the automakers are currently losing about $7-$10,000 per vehicle. And if this continues it will soon be “shareholders and tax payers”.
The only reason we have an emerging EV industry in 2018 at all is because of the Great Warming Swindle. Like solar and wind, EV’s are being pushed to market well before they are ready to be a reliable replacement for fossil fueled products.
BTW, Tesla shareholders don’t seem to have the same motives as most other shareholders on the planet, kinda like they believe virtue signalling itself has a monetary value or something.
Correct me if I am wrong, but I believe that Automakers NEED to produce electric cars to balance out their obligations to meet the CAFE … Corporate Fuel Efficiency standards. To obtain CAFE credits. And to avoid CAFE FINES that were TRIPLED in July 2016 … thanks Obama. As the illogical, and unattainable Corporate Fuel Efficiency standards keep getting more stringent … currently 27.5mpg average across the corporate fleet(?) and GHG requirements … I predict that automakers will produce and mothball thousands of EV’s that go unsold. Vast parking lots of electric autos that nobody wants. Only TRUMP can save this kind of WASTE in the name of … the environment.
FIRST … the UNIONS killed the automobile (well GM, anyway) … and now the EPA is trying its best to kill off ALL automobiles and all auto manufacturers. Bankruptcy is the goal for the EPA.
People been doing the electric car since 1832. Ain’t happened yet. Maybe when the Arctic is ice free.
Without a mass produced, safe, super battery delivered at a reasonable cost, the whole concept is enviro PR scam nonsense.
People been doing batteries since 1800. A safe super battery at the cost point needed ain’t happened yet. Maybe when the Arctic is ice free.
Always funny when cult fanatics say “ICE is a dead end, cannot be improved, but batteries are new technology”. I generally do not engage cult members tho, it is just pointless. True believers can never be dissuaded that Tesla is a Ponzi, batteries and electrics are mature technologies that have been under development longer than the ICE, nuclear is cheaper that solar or wind, … But when I have actual humans to talk to, nice to know I am not the only one.