America’s automakers have staked their futures on the notion that electric vehicles will dominate sales in the coming years, spurred by buyers determined to reduce carbon emissions and save on fuel.
But so far, while EV sales are growing, their pace is falling well short of the industry’s ambitious timetable for transitioning away from combustion engines. Instead, buyers are increasingly embracing a quarter-century-old technology whose popularity has been surging: The gas-electric hybrid, which alternates from gas to battery power to maximize efficiency.
So far in 2023, Americans have bought a record 1 million-plus hybrids — up 76% from the same period last year, according to Edmunds.com. As recently as last year, purchases had fallen below 2021’s total. This year’s figures don’t even include sales of 148,000 plug-in hybrids, which drive a short distance on battery power before a gas-electric system kicks in.
Infrastructure needs to improve. I live in a town of 1,500 people. The closest public charger to me is 100 miles away. That’s not an exaggeration. There’s been talk of a town 30 miles away getting one “one day” but still nothing yet.
My next car will be a plug in hybrid if I can get one. A 15-30 mile electric range will get me around town, but I can’t rely on needing to hit a charger every time I go into that bigger city 100 miles away because my fully electric car can maybe go 300 miles on a full charge. I just can’t commit to fully electric just because of logistics.