The True Challenge For Electric Car Consumers

---

Support CleanTechnica's work through a Substack subscription or on Stripe.

---

Originally published on EV Obsession.

We need to discuss something that a lot of electric car fans don’t want to admit. It’s really hard to get an electric car as your daily driver right now.

If you’re an EV fan, and I assume you are if you’re reading this site, I can already hear your responses:

• Charging isn’t an issue! You usually charge at home, and quick charging stations are popping up constantly!
• An electric car has far fewer moving parts, so it needs far less maintenance!
• The cost of electric travel is cheaper than gas, and electricity prices are far more stable, so it saves you money!

…and you’re right! It may not feel familiar, but all of the above are easy to adapt to and often considered great benefits of electric cars. So what am I talking about?

Current Electric Car Availability

It’s incredibly hard to actually get an electric car right now. Let’s take a quick look at the five most popular electric cars in the US at this moment:

Tesla Model 3 — New orders scheduled for September—November delivery

Tesla Model S — New orders scheduled for November delivery

Tesla Model X — New orders scheduled for November delivery

Chevy Bolt — Reports of delivery delay up to a year, Chevy states they are increasing production

Nissan Leaf — Over 35,000 orders place, demand believed to outstrip supply worldwide

Used Electric Car Availability

Used cars aren’t abundant either. For the Leaf, all model years 2011–2017, there are less than 2,000 listings on CarGurus.com, or less than 40 per state! Tesla handles the majority of its resales and it’s harder to check how many there really are, but there never seem to be more than 20 or so on the site. The Chevy Bolt is too new to really buy used.

It’s Hard to Get an Electric Car

The point is, simply, that buying an electric car is a completely different experience than buying an ICE car right now, specifically because of the availability. If you are going electric, there is a good chance you are going to need to have another travel solution for at least a few months while you wait for your car to arrive. You may also need to order your car without having test driven it at all.

What is even more incredible about that — none of these five models have national ad campaigns in the United States. This is happening at a time when auto sales are expected to plateau in the United States.

It makes me wonder — how many electric vehicles could be sold in the United States today with additional production capability and a national ad campaign or two?

If you are thinking about getting an electric car, know that it’s going to be difficult. Not to drive or charge, but just to get the car in your driveway.