The adoption of electric vehicles in the United States is becoming increasingly divided, according to J.D. Power’s latest E-Vision Intelligence Report.
On a nationwide basis, EV adoption rates continue to grow steadily: sales now represent 8.6% of the total new-vehicle retail market. And if we look at the year-over-year basis figure, overall EV adoption is up one point on the company’s 100-point index — which means the total score for EV adoption is 21.
J.D. Power’s data also reveals that the most active states for adoption are already on the “path to parity” when it comes to internal combustion engine vehicles. At the same time, consumers in the least active states are pulling away from buying EVs.
“Increasingly, the U.S. is being split into two camps when it comes to EV adoption: those states who’ve been aggressive about offering incentives and building infrastructure to support EVs and those that have not,” said J.D. Power in its update.
Michigan, Iowa, Kansas, Arkansas, Mississippi, Wyoming, Louisiana, South Dakota, West Virginia and North Dakota have the lowest levels of EV adoption; they have moved in the opposite direction and rates are actually declining.
So while at a national level J.D. Power’s recently introduced EV Retail Share Forecast is eyeing a baseline estimate of 70% EV market share by 2035, the picture is not quite what it appears.
“In line with the state-level trends discussed above, however, those projections vary considerably by state,” said J.D. Power in its report. “California, for example, which currently has the highest EV adoption rate in the nation, is projected to reach 94% market share by 2035. North Dakota, by contrast, which currently has the lowest EV adoption rate, is projected to have a 19% EV market share by 2035.”
Also worth noting is that progress being impacted by the EV pricing issue: affordability, although up 15 index points through the first half of 2023, is being skewed by big discounts on Tesla vehicles.
