Today, the electric vehicle nonprofit, in collaboration with EPRI’s EVs2Scale2030™ initiative, released findings from its 2024 electric vehicle consumer survey. Almost 90% of EV driver respondents are likely or very likely to purchase an EV for their next vehicle, and most consumers’ concerns about EVs decrease across the board once they lease or own an EV.
Sept. 4, 2024
LOS ANGELES – Plug In America, a national nonprofit accelerating the shift to electric vehicles (EVs), and EPRI, an independent non-profit R&D organization, today released key findings about EV driver satisfaction with their vehicles.
The biggest finding centered around new data collected about consumer concerns that compared respondents’ level of concern before and after they owned or leased an EV. The organizations found that the percentage of respondents who were worried about nearly every factor—such as battery range, public charging reliability and price—decreased after experience driving an electric vehicle.
“It’s great to have data show what we’ve heard from EV owners for years,” said Joel Levin, executive director for Plug In America. “What seem like scary issues for some people considering an EV become non-issues after going electric.”
The only concerns that increased were public charging reliability and weather impact. While the number of people concerned about public charging availability decreased after EV experience, it only dipped slightly. With investments from the Inflation Reduction Act and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act underway, the country is primed to address the main concerns about the EV experience.
Plug In America and EPRI also found that EV drivers love the electric experience. Eighty-nine percent of owners report they are “likely” or “very likely” to purchase an EV as their next automobile. This has been a consistent result since the inception of the survey in 2021. Certain groups of respondents—like EV drivers ages 65 and over, and Tesla drivers—had more than 90 percent of people report their next vehicle would likely be an EV.
When asked to rate how satisfied they are with their primary EV overall, the Rivian R1T and R1S took the top two spots, with the Tesla Model S coming in third. Plug In America and EPRI also asked EV drivers to share their satisfaction with their primary EV in other categories, such as range, charging, navigation system, ease of charging, and more, which can be found in the full report.
The 2024 EV Driver Survey includes responses from over 4,200 respondents, with more than 3,300 EV drivers. Of the almost 700 non-EV drivers, 77% of those considering buying or leasing a car in the next 12 months are considering a battery electric vehicle or plug-in hybrid electric vehicle.
The survey was fielded from January 2024 through March 2024. The intent was to get a full picture of the current EV experience in the United States, including data on primary motivations for choosing an EV, the purchasing journey, the biggest concerns of EV drivers and non-drivers, and the current EV driver profile.
Financial supporters of the annual survey include EPRI, Xcel Energy at the silver level and the Alliance for Transportation Electrification at the bronze level.
Experts from Plug In America and EPRI reviewed highlights in a webinar earlier today on Plug In America’s website, which is available with the full report at https://pluginamerica.org/survey/2024-ev-driver-survey/
About Plug In America
Plug In America is the nation’s leading nonprofit organization dedicated to accelerating the use of plug-in electric vehicles in the United States through education, advocacy and research. Formed in 2008, Plug In America provides practical, objective information to consumers and dealerships about EVs through various programs, including National Drive Electric Week, Drive Electric Earth Month, PlugStar.com, and other public outreach events. Learn more at PlugInAmerica.org.
About EPRI
Founded in 1972, EPRI is the world’s preeminent independent, non-profit energy research and development organization, with offices around the world. EPRI’s trusted experts collaborate with more than 450 companies in 45 countries, driving innovation to ensure the public has clean, safe, reliable, affordable, and equitable access to electricity across the globe. Together…shaping the future of energy.®
