Americans Cling To Gas Cars Over EVs Even At Equal Prices, Survey Reveals: What's The Biggest Factor?

Americans prefer to buy a standard gas vehicle over a hybrid or electric vehicle even within the same price range, a new study showed on Thursday.

What Happened: The KPMG American Perspectives Survey assessed the views of 1,100 adults nationwide to conclude that people would still prefer a gas car over a hybrid or EV even with the same price and features.

Only one out of 5 respondents to the survey said they would prefer an EV with a whopping 38% opting for a standard gas vehicle. Another 34%, however, said they would like to buy a hybrid.

However, things are different in San Francisco, where 73% of respondents said they would pick an electric or hybrid vehicle over a gas one if prices and features equaled.

See Also: California Asks: Should You Pay Per Mile You Drive? New Pilot Program Targets Road Funding As EV Boom Shrinks Gas Tax Revenue

Possible Reasons: A major hindrance to EV adoption is seemingly charging time. While an 80% charge on an EV currently takes 20 to 60 minutes on a fast charger and 4 to 10 hours on a level 2 charger, 60% of consumers want it in 20 minutes or less, the survey noted.

Furthermore, fewer consumers said they are likely to pay for self-driving features on their cars when compared to safety features like lane keep assist, in-vehicle Wi-Fi, and charging locator, dimming hopes for companies including EV giant Tesla, Inc. which is now laser-focussing on enabling vehicle autonomy and expects it to be a huge driver of value.

The consumer perspective survey comes amidst a global slowdown in EV demand. While some industry specialists have often pinned the slow transition to EVs on the higher costs of EVs as compared to gas vehicles, the survey refutes it.

Check out more of Benzinga’s Future Of Mobility coverage by following this link.

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