Where Did All Those US EVs Go?
The Biden Administration and Ford said 40% of all new car sales in the US would be EVs by 2030. Ford said it would invest $30 billion in production capacity to build hundreds of thousands of EVs. The US government offered $7,500 tax credits.
Trump killed the $7,500 EV tax credit. Ford and most legacy car companies left the market. Tesla stayed in, but even its sales dropped off.
Last year, EV sales accounted for almost 10% of new car sales. The figure has dropped by half. Major manufacturers don’t think the EV market will bounce back, so they may not invest for years. Converting factories from fossil fuel engines to EVs can take months or longer.
The wildcard is gas prices and the Strait of Hormuz. A drawn-out war will push oil over $100 for months. Americans will face $5 gas, which will erode household income and push up inflation. Then the Fed raises rates, and the economy probably slows.
Who wins today? Eventually Tesla. In some ways, it is by accident. They did not have fossil fuels to fall back on when gas prices dropped.
The war in the Middle East may be the only thing that makes EVs a viable alternative.
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