Comments on: Monthly Hybrid & Electric Vehicle Sales Update (May 2013)

By: Otis11

Otis11 — Sat, 22 Jun 2013 23:55:00 +0000

Ah, ok – very true. The only reason this wouldn’t expand “when the time is right” (aka very soon IMO) is if they figured out something better…

By: Bob_Wallace

Bob_Wallace — Sat, 22 Jun 2013 16:54:00 +0000

My issue was not about the loss claim. It was about ” will never go to the mass market”.

If Honda has put the money into developing an EV they’ll sell it. Unless it turns out to be badly flawed or they replace it with something superior.

By: Otis11

Otis11 — Sat, 22 Jun 2013 16:44:00 +0000

Ah, I think Marion i partially correct on this one. The reason the Honda Fit EV is restricted is because Honda is actually leasing it at a loss. There are two reasons for this: First, to be compliant with CA sales standards as Marion mentions, but also, second, market research for Honda. They are playing the game – losing a bit now in an effort to be ahead of the market when it peaks.

Now, I cannot *link* to any proof for this, so feel free to take it with as much or little credibility as you so chose.

By: Bob_Wallace

Bob_Wallace — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 15:26:00 +0000

I don’t think we can. Many people in the EV/battery industry think we are short years from much improved batteries which will give us EVs with much longer range and prices equal to or less than same-model ICEVs.

If/when that happens then the rate of EV adoption changes very significantly. One would be able to purchase an EV with all the functionality of a regular gasmobile, purchase it at no extra cost, and save a lot of money with driving expenses.

“If/when”, we don’t know that part. It could be sometime this year. It could be years or never.

By: Jackie

Jackie — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 13:27:00 +0000

How can we use this data to make accurate predictions about the future sales of EV/HEV/PHEV? Say in 5, 10, 15 years from now?

By: Bob_Wallace

Bob_Wallace — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 20:43:00 +0000

Sorry, that’s the sort of response one would expect from someone who can’t back up their claim.

Either you can backup your claim that the FiT will never go to mass market production or you can’t.

By: Marion Meads

Marion Meads — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 20:39:00 +0000

I’d rather have you search for it rather than spoon fed it to you. It is not a claim, it is a fact. Even Tesla have been touting their revenues from Green and Carbon credits to other companies to meet their compliance requirements.

By: Ross

Ross — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 06:33:00 +0000

Bring it on. More bark than bite.

By: Zachary Shahan

Zachary Shahan — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 05:58:00 +0000

Thanks a lot!

Yeah, it’s very exciting. Nice to see the game opening up a bit. Ford is clearly the big mover of late. Curious to see who steps up next.

By: Zachary Shahan

Zachary Shahan — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 05:57:00 +0000

You have any idea why Honda is taking so long to bring the car to a broader market?

By: Zachary Shahan

Zachary Shahan — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 05:52:00 +0000

you mean summarizing what the differences are? will keep in mind for next time. thanks.

By: Mohan Raj

Mohan Raj — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 01:05:00 +0000

Just the conventional hybrid sales are
48,796
http://www.hybridcars.com/may-2013-dashboard/

And the Electrics & Plugins add another 7,754 vehicles.

By: Bob_Wallace

Bob_Wallace — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 22:35:00 +0000

What’s your proof for that claim?

By: Marion Meads

Marion Meads — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 22:12:00 +0000

would be nice to have a summary for each category:
Hybrids (uses all gasoline or diesel)
PHEV (uses wall electricity and gasoline)
EV (uses wall electricity, no gasoline)

By: Marion Meads

Marion Meads — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 22:10:00 +0000

Excellent! 382,200 hybrids/EV/PHEV sold since 2012!!! And more than 100,000 of those are EV or PHEV! The oil industry is soon going to play their trump card unless the environmentalists can make it very hard for them.

By: Marion Meads

Marion Meads — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 22:08:00 +0000

the Honda Fit EV will never go to the mass market. it is a loss leader compliance car for Honda to meet their overall fleet requirements. But anything that gets the EV market going is super!

By: SecularAnimist

SecularAnimist — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 21:29:00 +0000

The Honda Fit EV is the one I want. And yes, the fact that it is “not yet broadly available” does have a lot to do with its low sales figures. In fact, as far as I know, you can’t actually buy one at all — it is only available for lease at this point.

But the Fit EV gets very positive reviews, and in many ways I think it hits the “sweet spot” that EVs need to hit to truly break out into a mass market option. It has good range, relatively low cost, and it is a practical utilitarian vehicle for commuting and suburban errands, rather than a high-tech high-end sports car.

When Honda eventually starts making the Fit EV available for sale in quantity, I would expect it to sell very well.

By: Ian Arnell

Ian Arnell — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 20:47:00 +0000

Thanks for the update! Glad you are back in action. Some pretty interesting data. Nice to see some of the newer models really surging ahead