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Comment by jryhjythtr | Hacker News Reader

"The market has decided it wants EVs!"

"Legacy auto will be caught short by the EV revolution!"

B*llox. EVs will be mandated, we will like them, and some will profit hugely.

Depending on the survey and the country (and they vary a lot) about 20-40% want to buy an electric car now (more so if you include hybrid) and the percent who are dead set against them at any cost is dropping. Those trends are growing at faster rates, before they are mandated EVs will be the main preference by ~80% of the public.

https://assets.ey.com/content/dam/ey-sites/ey-com/cs_cz/topi...

https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/business/energy-green/s...

Of course people want them when they end up cheaper in the long run. Many governments are subsidizing EVs while taxing non-EVs.

It is bait and switch. There is no 50% consumption tax on electricity where there is one on petrol. And you can already have BEVs more expensive than gas if you charge on fast DC chargers. So it is just matter of time before government will want those money.

In Germany charges, taxes etc on electricity are more than 50% already.

It can't be long before people realise that EVs will be more expensive to both purchase, and to fill with "fuel".

As such, EVs are very successful. They part people with large sums of money to keep economies moving, and limit how far they can travel, reducing CO2 emissions in the process.

In a way, they are like Rai Stones - expensive, immobile tokens of wealth.

In contrast to fossil fuels, Europe can ramp up electricity generation fairly easily as there is plenty of untapped potential left. That would reduce prices though renewables are already cheaper than fossil fuels. But even if renewables are not cheaper than oil and gas, the gained sovereignty is worth it alone. That much the war in Ukraine has shown very clearly.

>Europe can ramp up electricity generation fairly easily as there is plenty of untapped potential left.

Really? I look forward to heating my home with electricity this winter. All of those headlines of European countries facing blackouts, and record-high electricity prices, must be misinformation.

The energy crisis in Europe is very real. But the problem is the fossil fuels that have been cut off because of Russia. If the supply from Russia were not cut or if the EU had increased production from renewables faster in the past decade then this situation wouldn't have arisen. There is ample wind, solar and hydro energy potential left. We've accessed a small fraction of it.

Now Europe has been shaken and will hopefully learn the lesson and become completely independent in terms of energy in the next decade or two.

>become completely independent in terms of energy in the next decade or two

By buying a load more solar panels from China? :D

> Those trends are growing at faster rates, before they are mandated EVs will be the main preference by ~80% of the public.

Maybe of the same public who already owns an EV. Electricity prices are rising.

>20-40% want to buy an electric car now

What would that number look like, if there were no EV mandate? After all, the first link you presented shows that the second-highest reason to buy an EV, at 34%, is "Rising penalty on ICE".

>dead set against them at any cost is dropping.

I'm dead set against owning one, but my choices will become ever-narrower (and, in time, practically zero).

Let's not pretend this is a free choice.

Both electricity and EVs prices are skyrocketing not lowering right now...

I have to agree; as a complete nerd, that would _love_ an electric vehicle for all of the good things about them, battery tech and all-touch interiors will keep putting me off getting one, probably until I'm forced to.

I think there will be simpler offers once cheaper models are also EVs.

https://www.renaultgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/daci...

Nice, the pictured vehicle looks nothing like an EV interior, which is great!

I suppose the part I'm missing is that for now, all of the EVs we see are trying to be futuristic, once it's the norm, we should see more "normal" vehicles.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not some old-git who's anti-change, I'm a millenial, and a tech-nerd, but I also like to keep my eyes on the road when I'm driving.

As a driver I love much more:

- traffic jam ADAS where with a command my car follow the car in front of it or run at a steady speed alone without me keep driving;

- auto-hold that allow to simply ignore current road steepness

Instead as an IT guy I HATE the pile of crapware outside my control that "my" connected cars have. And that's a far bigger issue than a crappy or not UI and big or not touch panel aside...

So? That’s not different from decades of regulations in the car industry. You can’t sell a new car without safety belts, ABS, reversing camera, distraction detector, etc.

And (nitpick) this doesn’t require all cars sold to be electric. They have to be emission free.

> They have to be emission free.

This hasn't been a big problem. Even German diesel train are going with green current. /s

So no brakes and tires either? Wow, cars should start levitate cyberpunk style.

>So?

Regulations mandate features that would otherwise not necessarily be desirable, or purely economical. Let's not pretend otherwise, including EVs.

That’s only true if you believe the free market always behaves to optimize for the good of society.

In my opinion, it works horribly bad for long-term effects, so we need government regulation to prevent/soften the effects of the tragedy of the commons.

You repeat my point. It has been decided that EVs are good for society, and they are being mandated. Thus their widespread adoption will not be because "customers want them".

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