Disgust at the CEO’s rightwing activism is casting a pall but conservatives are no more likely to buy EVs
US liberals have become so disgusted with Tesla since Elon Musk’s rightward turn that they are now not only far less likely to purchase the car brand but also less willing to buy any type of electric car, new research has found.
The popularity of Tesla among liberal-minded Americans has plummeted since Musk, Tesla’s chief executive and the world’s richest person, allied himself with Donald Trump and helped propel the president to election victory last year.
While liberals reported mostly positive intentions around buying an electric car in August 2023, their overall support for EVs eroded in the wake of a collapse in their opinion of Teslas, according to the new study, which polled Americans on an array of environmental actions.
Once again, this time everybody join in, “electric cars aren’t here to save the planet they’re here to save the car industry.”
Electric vehicles don’t really solve any of the problems that cars have. They just shift the resource and environmental problems into a different arena.
It seems to me that the most effective way of dealing with personal vehicles is to use renewable power to produce gasoline (Blue crude).
That way your gasoline is carbon neutral or even carbon negative until you burn it, can actually be kept sterile and separate and only mixed on demand so it doesn’t go bad, and never has any sulfur in it because it’s made from scratch.
It also means that all of the vehicles that currently exist can still be used which would dramatically reduce the amount of energy necessary to keep a functional fleet of vehicles and doesn’t need everything to be replaced including the infrastructure.
Peaker plants could be built to soak up all of the extra renewable power when production is so much higher than demand so there’s no need to worry about where you get the power to do this.
There are solutions out here but they require a kind of rearrangement of how we do business at almost every level.
Electric cars are so much more efficient than gas cars that I can’t see how “Blue Crude” could ever get even close in terms of emissions. Electric cars are so efficient that if you converted the size of their batteries to gallons of gas, most of them would have a tank smaller than 4 gallons. Why would we keep using such inefficient engines just to try and recapture that carbon out of the atmosphere when we could just never emit it in the first place?
Norway, where I live, have invested a lot in the charging infrastructure since 2010. In 2024 9/10 cars registered were electric.
This far into the year, and the amount of newly registered electric cars is 94,1%. Tesla is 17% of the sales, they’re having a very good financing campaign on the new model Y. VW is second with 14%.
In countries where the infrastructure is good, a decent car with long range and is “cheap” is king.
I would love to have an electric vehicle. But first, I’d need to live somewhere with an appropriate power outlet near a reliable parking space.
I’m an apartment dweller that is lucky to find parking in front of my own home on Friday nights (when there are always more cars than usual.) I can only imagine how many people are in the same situation. Meanwhile, with the housing situation as it is, our ability to move to affordable houses (which could provide such power outlets) dwindles more every day. In this way, creating more affordable housing could lead more people to drive electric vehicles, simply by removing the barriers currently preventing them from doing so.
Hmmm. It’s almost like multiple facets of society… intersect somehow. Like if we were to improve one aspect, it could have a ripple effect that benefits other parts. So weird, right? Who would’a thunk it.
We’re seeing that in England.
There are commercial charging stations here and there in our neighborhood, but most people live in tarraced houses (in US terms, row houses) with unreserved resident’s parking on the streets. Our house is at the end of the row and has a big enough back garden to include a parking space, but that’s an exception. So now the council has offered to cut channels in the sidewalk from each house to the street so that charging cables can be run without impeding pedestrian access.
It still doesn’t solve the problem of being sure you can park in front of the house, but it’s a step in the right direction.
They must have interviewed idiots
He’s also turning us off in general
Build trains and bike lanes.
If US liberals can’t see the difference between Tesla cars and any old EVs, fuck US liberals quite frankly.
But I doubt it. If anybody is killing EVs in the US, it’s Donald “What Epstein files?” Trump.
Or they finally realized electric cars only fix one minor problem cars create and reinforce?
Whenever I get on the road I’m reminded that car emissions are not just one minor problem. Should there be more mass transit and remote work ? Yes. Is that ever going to happen in my area? Almost certainly not.
I feel like this is closer to the real answer. A lot of the criticism of Tesla applies to other EVs as well. Elon tanking his credibility opened up a dialogue about how EVs in general are super inconvenient, destroy roads, and aren’t nearly as “green” as they seem. This coupled with the US automakers focusing on behemoths instead cheap commuters only amplified this.
If EVs were predominantly the size of a Fiat 500e or Toyota Prius or Model 3, it’d be great. But in the US, “consumer sentiment” strongly prefers fuck-off huge SUVs (which I absolutely goddamn hate).
I say that as a unitedstatesian: The problem lies with US consumers and their stupid fucking preferences in this domain. You do not need a full-size pickup truck as your daily. Nor do you need a Suburban, or ford explorer, or Rivian, or whatever else enormous electrified (or not) SUV. But people here have come to love their gigantic cars.
OK guy
Are you sure it’s not that North American EVs are fucking awful and expensive? And that foreign ones have artificial restrictions to prop up the out-of-touch NA manufacturers?
Knowing charge infrastructure isn’t expanding and won’t be maintained doesn’t help
Yeah, the options for EV in the US are pretty horrible, and it’s mainly because US manufacturers want to have their cake and eat it as well. They don’t want to invest in EV manufacturing, which imo is fine. We shouldn’t have to prod corporations into remaining relevant. However, they are also spending millions of dollars lobbying the government into protecting their market from competitors and into overturning climate initiatives.
We won’t ever see these corporations invest in EV until an outside player forces their hands. Amazing how quickly the faux love of Free market economics became a thing of the past the moment there’s an actual threat of competition.
Best case scenario imo is that America car manufacturers shit the bed so hard that Americans actually begin to start to care about public transportation. Trains are the most effective and efficient mode of transportation and always have been, ev are just a band-aid.
Are they buying cargo bikes and lobbying for public transport improvements, or is this the stupidest timeline and we’re going to see liberals rolling coal in their diesel SUVs because fuck Elon?
I’m still waiting for an EV minivan. And also ya know having the spare money which is a lot less under this admin because there’s more uncertainty in everything and less regulation against exploitation.
the ID Buzz is really interesting to me, but just doesn’t have the range. Ofc it’s pricey as well.
The killer is that 60-70k price. Getting a similar hybrid is 40-50k and that extra 10-20k would take over a decade to reach break-even for me (about $75 in gas a month with the current conditions). Ofc I can buy used but used prices nowadays are insane.
I got a Kia plug in hybrid for less than 50k. Most of my miles are electric but I also don’t have any range problems.
Ill buy an EV when they can make one that has a decent range but also doesnt weigh 4 tons and cost $80k. As someone still driving what used to be a normal sized car 20 years ago, these monstrosities need to go.
Weve solved the issue of ICE pollution and created a million other problems. More pollution from tire wear, more pollution from battery waste, more pollution from producing giant battery sleds. More pollution from having to repave roads more often due to all these EVs weighing as much as two ICE cars… makes an efficient ICE engine in a small car seem like way less of a problem by comparison, at least to me
I have a Chevy Bolt EUV, ~400km range, weighs 1.6 metric tons and cost 36K USD for a trim with most of the bells and whistles.
I don’t drive myself but my wife uses it for a 7 hr drive a couple times a year just fine.
I just saw a post for a 2024 Honda Prologue EX EV with 1600 miles at a real car dealer for $25K.
It’s about harm reduction. Yes, heavy vehicles are hard on tires and suspension components. They also have no engine oil or power steering fluid, and much longer coolant change intervals. And, of course, no tailpipe emissions.
Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
Once something like slate trucks catches on it might make a difference. A vehicle shouldn’t cost more than your annual wages.
I don’t think Slate has a chance to hit that price point anymore. The Trump administration is cutting EV incentives and Slate has started changing their wording on the price. Now Slate lists it as “mid twenties”. That’s a lot to pay for a small vehicle with no features.
Their configurator with max spec is like $30k. If they can hit under $30k at release on a base model, I am interested. A base model Civic is $25k MSRP, a model 3 is $35k, and a Nissan Leaf is $30k.
I would be glad to be an early adopter in the hopes they can come out with an extended cab AWD with 400 miles of range that I can later swap to.
“Max spec” is closer to base specs on other vehicles. That 30k is likely an optimistic number. I hope I’m wrong, but I’m not expecting much from Slate. Maybe they’ll drive enough buzz to get the market to realize there is a demand for smaller, more affordable vehicles.
If Tesla can hit $35k with all crap they put in them, I am feeling optimistic about slate.
The kei truck popularity is enough of a display that we want tiny trucks, and with states trying to ban Kei trucks it presents a nice opportunity for the slate to do well.
If Tesla can hit $35k with all crap they put in them
That’s the neat part, they can’t. That $35k they advertise is with the $7500 rebate already applied. Remove that and the price is $42,500.
There are used chevy bolts for about $20k, they have around 300 mile range, they weigh around 3,500lbs.
Virtually all road damage is from heavy trucks and plows. The weight of two ice cars is still practically nothing compared to those.
Tires are a problem that need to be solved, microrubbers are going to be the leaded gas of our generation.
EVs actually shed less tire and brake dust.
https://insideevs.com/news/767017/brake-dust-emissions-evs-better/
For me a PHEV is the sweet spot at current tech levels. I use zero gasoline for my daily commute, but I can go on a long trip anytime I want without worrying about charging station availability.
Yeah, we got a PHEV in 2022 and we love it. I do wish it had a bit more EV range, I end up with range anxiety driving to my in-laws’ in the next city over, but otherwise it’s fantastic.
Why would you have any range anxiety? A plug in hybrid eliminates that.
Why would you have any range anxiety? A plug in hybrid eliminates that.
It’s not real range anxiety. It’s “can we make it without using gas” range anxiety. When we first got the car, and hadn’t yet taken it on any long trips, we were anal about trying to maximize our “lifetime” gas mileage for the vehicle. We had it up over 200mpg at one point! But that meant trying to find chargers everywhere.
(After a few long trips tanked that value down to something more reasonable, we don’t care as much. I still try to charge whenever I can though.)
I get 34 electric miles on a full charge and mostly have short trips with no gas miles. But of course even on trips longer than 34 miles, I only use gas for miles above that amount. Last time I filled my fuel tank was after a long trip late March. I still have over 1/2 of a tank left.
Yeah, in the summer we get around 40 EV miles, if we avoid freeways. I do love the car.
I don’t know about your car, but one problem with my car (Kia Sportage) is that using the heater will always require gas.
Have you actually looked at the EV market, or is this informed by vibes? Most EVs are sedan sized and reasonably priced, especially compared to all the $100,000 trucks Americans love to buy.
Hyundai makes excellent EVs.
The theory put forth here doesn’t make a lot of sense. Are we sure left leaning people aren’t just becoming more anti-car in general?
For me, 5 years ago, buying an EV seemed like a great idea, albeit one I couldn’t really afford. But then I realize I could just reduce my driving by 90% and achieve the same benefit while saving money. So I don’t really need an EV anymore now that I barely ever drive.
I own two “EVs.” They’re bicycles.
Fuck yeah e-bikes are great.
It’s such a beautiful confluence of technologies
Uh, no? I want an EV, though I want a small one that has a light touch on the environment. It’s true that I don’t want one that’s from a Nazi wannabe, but I do want an EV that has decent range and can transport my wife and me for daily tasks. But maybe I don’t catch the attention of US EV makers because I’d rather an e-bike than an E-SUV?
The new Prius is surprisingly good looking in person. Though, if I was going EV and had the money, I like those Lucids.
I think only extremely expensive luxury models being available is keeping Americans from buying EVs. Like where are the cheap, dependable small cars, like in other countries!?
Biggest downside to me is the battery price.
Seriously! Give me a Honda Fit sized electric hatchback that uses a modern charging standard (so not the Leaf).
I have a Honda Fit and it is the best car I’ve ever owned. If Honda came up with a Fit EV (again), I would probably buy it right away.
I’ve got an older (2006) Accord. I like it, but it’s 19 years old with 260k miles, and it’s just starting to have some rust issues. It’s getting to the point where repairs are almost not worth the cost. An electric Fit (or similar) might be enough for me to shell out for a new car instead of another 10+ year old car.
Is this not the Chevy Bolt? Sure productions been on hiatus, but a late model used one is a pretty good price.
I’d love an electric fit at a reasonable price point
Yup. I hate Teslas, not EVs in general, but I also hate the pricing of them.
Are you only considering buying new? A ‘23 Chevy Bolt from carvana is about $16k
" For now, BYD and other Chinese EVs are virtually locked out of the US market due to tariffs."
And “safety concerns.” Some are legit but in context, are probably safer than Teslas. The Chinese EV makers just need to buy more politicians.
In Aus , we have pretty strict safety over cars, the cybertruck will never be allowed on our roads due to safety issues, most of the byd range is currently available, and they are great cars! So, in this instance most likely def safer then at least 1 Tesla 😂
EVs were always a distraction from our lack of public transportation.
Also, Tesla was redesigned after Musk bought it as a company to suck up green energy subidies to sell luxury cars at a premium instead of offering any real solutions.
