Electric vehicle (EV) dealers are urging the Biden-Harris administration to relax emissions regulations and EV mandates.
More than 5,000 dealerships across the U.S. exhorted the government to relax emissions regulations and EV mandates in an open letter. They expressed concern about emissions rules put forward by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and state-level EV sales requirements to both federal and state officials.
The plummeting sales of EVs have left pure electric-powered cars piling up on their lots, the dealers wrote. They ultimately warned that Americans could end up competing for a smaller inventory of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles – i.e. those powered by gasoline – if officials do not act and adjust the regulations.
According to Automotive News, the letter is the third in a series signed by thousands of dealerships. The first letter, which was addressed to President Joe Biden, was sent last November. A follow-up was sent early this year, the outlet added. This time, the dealerships are urging officials from both the Republican and Democratic parties to amend EV policy following the elections this November.
"[The EV regulations] are out of touch with the state of EV technology, charging infrastructure and – most of all – the American consumer," the letter stated. The results of the EY Mobility Consumer Index released on Sept. 9 appear to back up this claim, as it found that American consumers today are less likely to buy an EV than they were last year.
The survey by the accounting firm that polled roughly 1,500 Americans found that for this year, only 34 percent plan to buy an EV in the next two years. This was 14 points lower than the number for last year, where almost half of respondents – 48 percent – intend to go electric.
Fully gas-powered or hybrid cars more palatable than pure battery EVs
The letter also revealed a laundry list of worries about EVs that consumers are worried about. Such concerns include "battery replacement costs, performance in cold weather, higher insurance costs, unpredictable electricity charging rates and plummeting resale values."
Mickey Anderson, president of the Nebraska-based dealership Baxter Auto Group, said dealerships like his are seeing customers' declining interest in electric cars on the ground. He added that consumers have expressed concerns over access to charging and affordability. Given these concerns, Anderson said many customers today want to find the right ICE or hybrid vehicle options for them.
The Baxter Auto Group president also mentioned that thousands of dealerships predicted in their first letter that consumer demand won't meet the expectations of EV regulations. Now, those same dealerships are seeing that prediction become reality in their stores.
"There is no question that there is a massive disconnect between what American consumers really need to have reliable, dependent transportation and the cars that the EPA is requiring manufacturers to build," Anderson said.
Jared Allen, spokesman for the National Automobile Dealers Association, pointed out that dealerships will continue to promote EVs. However, he remarked that regulations are out of step with consumer demand.
"The charging infrastructure is not ready, [and] the current incentives are not sufficient," Allen said. "High EV prices will price out millions of consumers, particularly low-income Americans, from the new car market." (Related: Op-ed: Only 7 EV charging stations out of 500,000 nationwide target built under Biden admin's $7.5B plan.)
The letter ultimately warned that if state and federal authorities mandate automakers to churn out more EVs than consumers will buy, the resulting increase in competition could push the price of gas-powered vehicles up. If ICE vehicles become more expensive, this could inadvertently cause more consumers to "hold on to their older, less fuel-efficient cars – which is exactly the wrong direction for the environment, automotive jobs and the economy."
Watch former President Donald Trump promising to end the Biden-Harris administration's EV mandate below.
This video is from the GalacticStorm channel on Brighteon.com.
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