Gas is Expensive. So Why Aren't Electric Cars More Popular?
On this week’s episode of The AutoGuide Show, we are tackling the big question hanging over the automotive industry right now: With gas prices hitting historic highs, why are electric vehicle sales slowing down? To get past the speculation and look at the hard data, we sat down with Brent Gruber, Executive Director of EV Solutions at JD Power.
The Gap Between Interest and Action
Gruber reveals that while consumer interest in EVs is actually skyrocketing due to painful prices at the pump, actual sales are hitting a serious bottleneck.
According to JD Power's latest research, the hurdles come down to two primary issues: affordability and a massive education gap regarding infrastructure.
"There is a fundamental lack of education in the EV space right now," Gruber explains. "When we ask EV rejectors how close public chargers need to be for them to buy an EV, the overwhelming majority say 'every 50 miles.' In reality, chargers are already significantly more prevalent than that. The infrastructure is there, but the perception hasn't caught up."
We also dive deep into the unexpected hidden costs of home charging for older residences, the shift toward destination charging at grocery stores and restaurants, and why the sudden influx of 4-to-5-year-old off-lease vehicles might finally solve the EV affordability crisis.
Also on This Week's Show:
The $1,400 Digital Track Coach: We head to Toronto Motorsports Park to put the Garmin Catalyst Driving Performance Optimizer through its paces. If you are serious about shaving tenths of a second off your lap times, this real-time, AI-powered coach might just be the best investment you can make, even if it costs as much as a set of premium tires.
Supercar vs. Rush Hour: What is it actually like to daily drive a cutting-edge supercar in heavily congested traffic? We take the all-new 2026 Lamborghini Temerario, a plug-in hybrid weapon pushing 907 combined horsepower from a twin-turbo V8 and three electric motors, and subject it to a brutal, two-hour rush hour crawl across the Greater Toronto Area. Spoiler alert: It handles the stop-and-go gridlock shockingly well.
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With AutoGuide from its launch, Colum previously acted as Editor-in-Chief of Modified Luxury & Exotics magazine where he became a certifiable car snob driving supercars like the Koenigsegg CCX and racing down the autobahn in anything over 500 hp. He has won numerous automotive journalism awards including the Best Video Journalism Award in 2014 and 2015 from the Automotive Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC). Colum founded Geared Content Studios, VerticalScope's in-house branded content division and works to find ways to integrate brands organically into content.
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I have a 2024 Cadillac XT6 Premium Luxury, Platinum Edition, the equivalent Electric Cadillac is the 3 row Vistiq. Comparably equipped the Vistiq would cost roughly $25,000 more. I can buy a lot of gasoline for $25,000, probably 6 or 7 years' worth.
Doesn't sound like a good investment to me.