Plug In America, a national nonprofit focused on advancing electric vehicles (EVs), and the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), an independent nonprofit R&D organization, have recently published new insights on EV driver satisfaction.
The main finding highlighted new data on consumer concerns before and after owning or leasing an EV.
The study revealed that the percentage of respondents worried about various factors, including battery range, public charging reliability, and price, decreased once they had experience driving an electric vehicle.
“It’s great to have data show what we’ve heard from EV owners for years,” said Joel Levin, executive director for Plug In America. “What seem like scary issues for some people considering an EV become non-issues after going electric.”
Concerns about public charging reliability and the impact of weather increased slightly after EV ownership. Although worries about charging availability decreased somewhat with experience, the reduction was minimal. With ongoing investments from the Inflation Reduction Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the country is well-positioned to address these key concerns about the EV experience.
Plug In America and EPRI also found that EV drivers love the electric experience: Eighty-nine percent of owners report that they are “likely” or “very likely” to purchase an EV as their next vehicle.
This has been a consistent finding since the survey’s inception in 2021. Certain groups, including EV drivers aged 65 and over and Tesla owners, reported that over 90 percent of them would likely choose an EV for their next vehicle.
When asked to rate satisfaction with their primary EV overall, the Rivian R1T and R1S took the top two spots, with the Tesla Model S coming in third. Plug In America and EPRI also asked EV drivers to share their satisfaction with their primary EV in other categories, such as range, charging, navigation system, ease of charging, and more, which can be found in the full report.
The 2024 EV Driver Survey includes responses from over 4,200 respondents with more than 3,300 EV drivers. Of the almost 700 non-EV drivers, 77% of those considering buying or leasing a car in the next 12 months are considering a battery electric vehicle or plug-in hybrid electric vehicle.
The survey, conducted from January to March 2024, aimed to provide a comprehensive review of the current EV experience in the United States. It gathered data on primary motivations for choosing an EV, the purchasing journey, key concerns of both EV drivers and non-drivers, and the profile of current EV drivers.
Financial supporters of the annual survey include EPRI, Xcel Energy at the silver level and the Alliance for Transportation Electrification at the bronze level.
The full report is available here.
Filed Under: Charging, Technology News