Electric Vehicle Market Trends 2024: Slowing Growth but Promising Future
by AutoExpert | 30 May, 2024
Are you ready to hit the panic button on the whole EVs subject? Hold your horses, cause we have some untangling to do first!
Yep, EV sales are going up as we speak, they're even expected to hit new records for 2024, but that may not last long. Sales went up like crazy last year, but the pace is slowing down month to month.
According to reports, sales for Evs and plug-in hybrids would be 20% higher in 2024 compared to 2023. You'd say that's a lot. We'd say: not really, compared to the 35% growth in 2022 to 2023.
Here's the thing: the early adopters, the techie crowd who loved Teslas, they've mostly been served. Now, the car industry needs to figure out how to convince regular folks, who just want a good car that gets them places, to switch to electric. Affordability is key here. Carmakers gotta find a way to make these things cheaper without going broke themselves.
Speaking of Tesla, they have a big footprint in all this slowdown, including US. Huge numbers of EVs are still being sold, but Tesla's market share decreased to 50% from 60%, and price cuts didn't help much.
But guess what? Other big name automakers are stepping up their game. Some are seeing EV sales jump by 50% or more compared to last year. For example, Ford became the second-biggest EV seller in the US (after Tesla) by slashing the price of their Mustang Mach-E. Sales for that model more than doubled!
There's a catch though: selling cheaper EVs hurts profits. Ford is pushing back some future electric car plans to focus on designing models they can actually make money on. Meanwhile, their rival GM seems to be picking up speed. Their Cadillac Lyriq is selling well, and they're restarting production on another electric car, the Blazer EV. Plus, they have a more affordable EV, the Equinox, coming out soon.
China's a whole other story. They're churning out EVs that could be the affordable option everyone's looking for. But there's a lot of competition there too. Over a dozen Chinese EV makers have gone bust in the past year alone, and more are likely to follow. It's a fight for survival in that market.
The US market will see some consolidation too, but not as dramatic. Basically, this is how big tech disruptions usually go: a bunch of companies jump in, some win, some lose. It's a shakeout phase.
Don't despair though, there's growth on the horizon for EVs. A couple of reasons for this:
• Governments in Europe are getting stricter about emissions, which could push people towards EVs. Similar things are happening in the US.
• Automakers might try to squeeze some EV sales into next year to meet those stricter standards.
• The industry is finally adopting Tesla's charging standard, which should make things easier for EV owners. No more charger confusion!
• Most importantly, a wave of new electric car models is coming, including some more affordable options. Think a new Chevy Bolt EV or an electric Dodge Charger! Buckle up, because next year could be a big year for EVs.