No doubt many taxpayers have already developed a healthy skepticism if not
distaste for government-subsidized electric vehicles. But consumers may also
have reason to beware, based on a recent report from automotive magazine Car
and Driver.

Also in the news is one more reminder that it can be a bumpy road to the
energy transition envisioned by the White House. Why, it was just three
months ago that a Reuters report from David Shepardson noted:

Two senior Biden administration officials got behind the wheel of new
electric vehicles (EV) Wednesday at the Washington, D.C. auto show to
urge Americans to consider buying a zero-emission model.

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm and White House climate adviser Ali
Zaidi took spins in a Ford F-150 Lightning and a Chevrolet Bolt as they
touted revamped $7,500 EV tax credits and new $4,000 second-hand EV
credits.

But perhaps all subsidized things must someday come to an end. The Journal�s
Mike Colias reports on General Motors today:

The Detroit auto maker... said Tuesday it would drop the Chevrolet Bolt
from its lineup, killing off its first mainstream electric vehicle as
it moves to newer battery technology...

GM�s decision to unplug the Bolt�while expected by analysts�ends a
troubled run for the model, which had become a black eye for the
company after battery fires and costly recalls dented its early push
into electric vehicles.

Fortunately many car shoppers seemed to be aware of the vehicle�s problems
long before the federal officials who kept urging them to buy.

Now there seems to be another concern that goes beyond Chevy. Regardless of
the manufacturer, taxpayers looking to get some of their money back from the
feds by purchasing a subsidized e-car should be careful to restrain their
expectations. Caleb Miller reports for Car and Driver:

A new paper published by SAE International uses Car and Driver�s real-
world highway test data to show that electric vehicles underperform
on... efficiency and range relative to the EPA figures by a much
greater margin than internal-combustion vehicles. While the latter
typically meet or exceed the EPA-estimated highway fuel economy numbers,
EVs tend to fall considerably short of the range number on the window
sticker. The paper, written by Car and Driver�s testing director, Dave
VanderWerp, and Gregory Pannone, was presented this week at SAE
International�s annual WCX conference. It points to a need for revised
testing and labeling standards for EVs moving forward.

�Basically we�ve taken a look at how vehicles perform relative to the
values on the window sticker, looking at the difference between what
the label says and what we actually see in our real-world highway test,�
explained VanderWerp. �We see a big difference in that gap between gas-
powered vehicles and the performance of EVs. The real question is:
When first-time customers are buying EVs, are they going to be
pleasantly surprised or disappointed by the range?�

On Car and Driver�s 75-mph highway test, more than 350 internal-
combustion vehicles averaged 4.0 percent better fuel economy than what
was stated on their labels. But the average range for an EV was 12.5
percent worse than the price sticker numbers.

The column will go out on a limb and predict that ensuring e-car benefits are
not overstated will not be the top priority of the Biden Environmental
Protection Agency.

Looking at the happy federal officials pictured in the doomed car model at
the top of this page�and considering all the lobbying that went into
subsidizing it�one can only wonder: Would you buy a schmoozed car from these
people?

--
Let's go Brandon!

Ubiquitous <weberm@polaris.net> wrote:
> The Detroit auto maker... said Tuesday it would drop the Chevrolet Bolt
> from its lineup, killing off its first mainstream electric vehicle as
> it moves to newer battery technology...
>
> GM�s decision to unplug the Bolt�while expected by analysts�ends a
> troubled run for the model, which had become a black eye for the
> company after battery fires and costly recalls dented its early push
> into electric vehicles.

Chevy really doesn't know how to sell the Bolt. A friend of mine went to
buy one and couldn't find any dealer who knew anything about it or wanted
to sell it. One of the dealers did point her to a salesman who primarily
did fleet sales; apparently most of the purchasers of the Bolt were fleet
services. The fleet guys were happy to sell her a single Bolt, but if she
had not been so persistent she would have bought from the competition long
before that.

She's delighted with the car, though. Me, I am worried about what long-term
support from GM is going to be like... will the repair folks be like the sales
folks?

Point is, if you don't try to sell it, you probably won't sell many.
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."