A significant portion of European consumers are open to buying an electric car. In a poll conducted by Ipsos Mori for NGO Transport & Environment, 40% of citizens surveyed say it is likely the next car they’ll buy or lease will be electric or fuel cell powered. Five to twelve percent of citizens say it is very likely they’ll buy an electric next, while a third of those polled say it is somewhat likely.
While carmakers are forecasting 20-25% sales of electric cars by 2025, this survey suggests that there is demand if they can bring down prices and increase production. Italians and Spaniards (both 48%) are most likely to say that they would purchase or lease an EV as their next vehicle, while French and Germans (24 and 25%, respectively) are the least likely to say the same thing.
Perceived barriers to purchasing electric vehicles
Nearly two-thirds of Europeans believe that car makers are not doing enough to sell electric vehicles by attractive marketing, pricing, and offering enough choice. A separate analysis indicates that just 3% of marketing spent is on plug-in cars and a mystery shopping survey showed dealers actively discouraging potential buyers.
The biggest barrier for those who said they would not likely buy or lease an EV next is their high price. With tumbling battery costs, electric car prices should come down soon. Volkswagen recently announced that it will start selling a Golf-style electric car with a 330 km range for the same price as a diesel.
The second biggest barrier is the availability of recharging points. However, a recent study suggests that there is a sufficient number of recharging points in most countries. Moreover, just five percent of recharging happens at public chargers.
Over half of those surveyed want the EU to set ambitious targets that are achievable to reach CO2 emissions from new cars in 2030. In EU countries and the European Parliament, there has been a fierce debate about possible job losses by carmakers, but just 11% say that the EU should limit their targets to ensure that there is no more than a minimal impact on jobs in the car and oil industries.
[via TransportEnvironment]
