# Low sales of electric vehicles



## ricksmol (Jul 7, 2008)

Low sales of electric vehicles: 


http://green.autoblog.com/2011/03/01/gm-sells-281-chevy-volts-february-nissan-67-leafs/


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## dtbaker (Jan 5, 2008)

no surprise at the price... I still think that a 50-mile DC car could retail at $15k, and sell like hotcakes.


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## pete c (Feb 26, 2011)

what he ^^^^^ said.

a simple light 2 seat 50 mile car marketed to commuters would sell, imo.

i suspect the main reason we don't see it is because of ridiculous federal safety laws. such a vehicle would still be safer than a motorcycle, yet motorcycles are legal. go figure.


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## dtbaker (Jan 5, 2008)

pete c said:


> a simple light 2 seat 50 mile car marketed to commuters would sell, imo.
> 
> i suspect the main reason we don't see it is because of ridiculous federal safety laws. such a vehicle would still be safer than a motorcycle, yet motorcycles are legal. go figure.


I think a simple, small, light 4-seater would have broader appeal as a 'around town' car capable of carting typical 4 person fam + groceries. Nothing wrong with a tested and approved 'old' style like the classic geo metro or existing ford focus... especially if it saves the research dollars and keeps the price down!

I see no reason at all Ford couldn't take their existing focus, or any of the other manufacturers using their smallest hatchbacks, and change the driveline to a simple 120v/8"/400amp motor x 100ah LIFePO4 system and sell for $15k. A 144v/9"/500amp system could be the 'sport' version! and larger battery pack an easy upgrade for additional cost (but less cargo space).


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## ElectriCar (Jun 15, 2008)

I'm sort of shocked but OTOH they are very expensive. Still, the Volt is an awesome vehicle "idea". I just have a bad taste from GM. It could be the salesmen just aren't up on selling it yet, don't see the benefits etc. When you tell someone an electric is like driving a vehicle that gets 100mpg or such and you never have to change oil etc, that should create demand. I think more than anything it's going to take a paradigm shift in thinking for people. 

However, gas prices weren't spiking either until late Feb. They will catch on, particularly the Volt. I hope the Leaf takes off too but it is rather expensive and probably viewed as a toy by many since you can't take it to the beach or Disney on vacation.


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## rochesterricer (Jan 5, 2011)

Isn't this just a matter of production capacity right now? They can't sell them because they can't get them on the lots and out to customers yet.


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## JRP3 (Mar 7, 2008)

Yeah some of you have missed the point. LEAF sales are limited because they can't make them fast enough, not because no one wants them. The Volt may have some demand issues, which may be the result of their own confusing marketing ploys. They want to call it an EV but people see 40 miles or less electric range and the high price tag. They should have just marketed it as what it really is, a plug in hybrid.
The idea that an inexpensive 50 mile range car will sell to the general public flies in the face of reality.


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## unclematt (May 11, 2008)

It couldn't be the fact that many dealers are attempting to PRICE GOUGE people by pricing their Volt as high as $65,000!!! Which GM specifically warned them NOT to do. And its odd they would do so, since it seems they have simply priced themselves out of the market. As is evidenced by the low sales figures

Greed, accompanied by vast stupidity, seems to strike everywhere these days...


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## ElectriCar (Jun 15, 2008)

I certainly hope it's due to lack of cars to sell but I didn't take it that way.


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## JRP3 (Mar 7, 2008)

There are reports of Volts sitting unsold on lots, but in some cases dealers are using them as show pieces to draw people in but not selling them. The LEAF is certainly constrained by production, there are people waiting for them to arrive.
What's really interesting is all the comments that seem to have appeared on the Autobloggreen article. Normally an ABG article might get less than 40 comments, this one has over 440! FUD attack?


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## JRP3 (Mar 7, 2008)

Yup, after reading more of the comments they are mostly anti EV rants from people who have never commented at ABG before. This is a directed FUD attack.


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## pete c (Feb 26, 2011)

i'm kinda new here. what's a FUD?


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## JRP3 (Mar 7, 2008)

Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt. Turns out that all the negative attention came from The Drudge Report linking to the article. Considering the level of commentary that doesn't surprise me.


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## ElectriCar (Jun 15, 2008)

On the news a few minutes ago, they asked Senator Lamar Alexander of Tennessee what he thought Obama should do about gas prices. He said he was going tomorrow to buy an electric car and would be proud that no money for fuel would be going to people who hate us. 

I think once the word gets out about all the benefits they will sell better. However the $$$ has to come down. 

Prius will come out with an extended range plug in for 2012 for about the same price it sells for now, around $28K. I'd much rather have that then a GM product.


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## JRP3 (Mar 7, 2008)

I wonder if he's actually getting an electric car, or a Volt. Since LEAF's are all back ordered he's probably getting a Volt, unless he pre-ordered. Again, EV's are selling quite well, so well they can't meet demand. We don't need them to sell even better if we can't supply the current demand.


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## HDS (Aug 11, 2008)

The feedback that I get from most people that I talk to about EV's is "If you run out of power, you can't just run down to the corner for a gallon of electricity." I agree that the price needs to be down near $15K to get one into every driveway. I think that the Volt needs to come way down in price and needs to market itself as an electric vehicle WITH gas backup. That lessens the fear of running out in the middle of the trip. 

The EV will most certainly have to be a 2nd car for virtually everyone. It may be the main one used whenever the range is within range but it doesn't satisfy the feeling and comfort of freedom that comes with an ICE. With an ICE vehicle, you may only go 20 miles in a day but you know that if you feel like it, you can hop in and go 1000 miles to Florida at any time. While that may be possible in an EV with properly planned stops, it is not the same and will take considerably longer. 

With gas prices on the rise, an EV as a 2nd car is more and more inviting. And it will be used whenever possible. The price though, imo, cannot be $65K except for the chosen few, and these chosen ones can afford the higher price of gas.

Just my opinion, 
HDS


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## ElectriCar (Jun 15, 2008)

Are u sure its stock issue and not demand? Both had sales decline last month


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## JRP3 (Mar 7, 2008)

The LEAF is a supply issue, people have reserved them and are waiting for delivery. Yes last month was down, it was also a short month, and they diverted more sales to Japan since the EV incentive was about to expire. It has since been reinstated I believe. 20,000 people signed up for a LEAF, even if half dropped out there is still way more demand than product.


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## JRP3 (Mar 7, 2008)

HDS said:


> The feedback that I get from most people that I talk to about EV's is "If you run out of power, you can't just run down to the corner for a gallon of electricity."


But you'll probably end up closer to an outlet than a gas station. Plus unlike a gas car which keeps running fine until it stops an EV should start to slow down and give you some time at low speed to get to a charge point. 


> I agree that the price needs to be down near $15K to get one into every driveway.


We are so far away from an EV in every driveway it's just not an issue. The price does not need to be $15K, the average purchase price for a car in the US last year was about $28K. Why would a smooth, quiet, car with good acceleration that is free from gas prices need to cost less?


> I think that the Volt needs to come way down in price and needs to market itself as an electric vehicle WITH gas backup. That lessens the fear of running out in the middle of the trip.


The Volt should have been marketed as what it is, a plug in hybrid, not an EV. It could have been seen as a better Prius. 



> The EV will most certainly have to be a 2nd car for virtually everyone. It may be the main one used whenever the range is within range but it doesn't satisfy the feeling and comfort of freedom that comes with an ICE. With an ICE vehicle, you may only go 20 miles in a day but you know that if you feel like it, you can hop in and go 1000 miles to Florida at any time. While that may be possible in an EV with properly planned stops, it is not the same and will take considerably longer.


With rising gas prices that 1000 mile trip to Florida becomes no more of a reality in a gas car than an EV. What people need is a way to get to and from work and the store without spending a fortune on gas, which may not be available if the Middle East keeps going the way it is. I remember the gas shortages of the '70s, it can happen again. People are going to have to wake up to the fact that the endless road trip on a whim only existed because of cheap and abundant petroleum. Those days may be gone. So what, no one needs to make those kinds of trips, and if they want to they can rent a car. It's not a real issue anyway since most households have more than one vehicle. If we ever get near half of all passenger vehicles being EV's then people can start to worry about range issues. Of course by then batteries will be better and fast charge stations will be everywhere.


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## coxes_enigma2 (Jan 9, 2011)

JRP3 said:


> Yeah some of you have missed the point. LEAF sales are limited because they can't make them fast enough, not because no one wants them. The Volt may have some demand issues, which may be the result of their own confusing marketing ploys. They want to call it an EV but people see 40 miles or less electric range and the high price tag. They should have just marketed it as what it really is, a plug in hybrid.
> The idea that an inexpensive 50 mile range car will sell to the general public flies in the face of reality.


 
I looked up the volt it is a nice car but GM is not know for their wanting to sell a electric or hybrid any one remember the EV1 look up who killed the electric car and then you will see why gm has poorly copied the prius and then stick a $41,000.00 price tag with a 40mile range and only 30 miles a gallon as a gas generator the car companies dont want to do any better why do so and eliminate 90% of the parts that drives the car industry


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