Survey of dealerships finds that majority are doubtful about the future of electric vehicles

A survey of managers and executives at dealerships finds that 65% say they are pessimistic about the future of electric vehicles

CDK Global, a research firm specializing in data for dealerships, surveyed 250 dealership managers and executives and found that 29% were very pessimistic about the future of EVs. A third of them said their customers simply aren’t interested in the technology.

One-fourth of respondents said the dealership they work for had monthly sales volumes below 50 EVs per month. A third sold between 51 and 100 EVs, and 29% sold between 101 and 250 EVs. Of those surveyed, 13% sold more than 251 vehicles.

Only 13% of dealers said they were extremely confident or very optimistic in the automotive manufacturers’ plans.

“Those numbers are troubling on the surface but when you consider the brands our respondents represent, it might be even more distressing,” the report stated, which said the respondents sell brands with the most EVs in their lineups or have well-regarded EV lines.

“These are dealers with experience in volume and quality EVs. Yet, they’re still pessimistic,” the report said.

According to the survey, only around half of respondents, depending on the region of the U.S. they sold in, said EVs would make up half of all sales within the next 5-15 years. Respondents in the South, at 36%, were the lowest of those surveyed who saw that happening, and 52% of respondents in the East agreed with the timeframe. One fourth of those surveyed said it wouldn’t happen for several decades at least.

According to those surveyed, 62% of customers are passing on EVs because of the limited range, 47% of customers mentioned charging too difficult or takes too long, and 34% were concerned about the high purchase price.

Last November, over 4,000 dealerships signed onto a letter telling President Joe Biden to put a halt on EV mandates, calling them “unrealistic.” Since then, 1,000 more have signed onto the campaign.