Car Shoppers Aren’t Searching for Hybrids and EVs Online

Under the new Republican tax plan, the $7,500 tax credit for electric vehicles may be scrapped.

This revelation has fueled a debate over the consumer demand for hybrid and electric vehicles and if the lack of the incentive would put a damper on EV sales. According to a recent report by CNBC, car buyers may not be as interested in owning a hybrid or electric car as previously believed – incentive or not. Kelley Blue Book, a car shopping site that gets 16 million unique users each month, recently found that fewer than 5 percent of the searches on the site were for hybrid or electric vehicles.

“While it is not ideal that the tax credit may go away, it was not the panacea for electric vehicle sales,” said KBB analyst Rebecca Lindland. “It is not like EV sales were on fire because of the incentive.”

It seems that part of the problem is product awareness – or the lack thereof. With an abundant array of hybrids on sale today, it’s likely that there’s a gasoline-electric vehicle on sale to meet the needs of nearly all consumers. The problem is that many of them don’t know that.

“Car buyers don’t see hybrid and electric vehicles as providing the right solutions for their wants and needs, even though the vehicles often can,” Lindland said.

SEE ALSO: Six Automakers Join Forces for ‘Ionity’ High Power EV Charging Network

With emissions regulations set to become stricter, it won’t matter what consumers are shopping for – they’ll be getting hybrids either way. Many automakers, from Volvo to Mazda to Aston Martin, have outlined plans to offer electrified versions of all of their vehicles within a certain timeframe. Many automakers are also beginning to roll out more pure electric models, with one of the most highly anticipated EVs, the Porsche Mission E, set to arrive in 2019. Perhaps consumers will begin to take more interest in electrified vehicles when they are the staple of most automaker’s lineups rather than outlier.

[Source: CNBC]