A recent research poll by KPMG in Canada found that 71 percent of Canadians will consider an Electric Vehicle (EV) for their next purchase and half of those who responded reported that their desire to buy an EV is “greater today than it was a year ago.”
KPMG is a full-service Audit, Tax and Advisory firm, and their findings echo research results from last year in which 68 percent of Canadian respondents “who plan to buy a new vehicle within the next five years said it would likely be either a pure or hybrid EV.”
KPMG’s findings showed that EVs were particularly appealing to those consumers in British Columbia and Ontario; with 77 percent and 74 percent respectively saying they would consider buying an EV the next time they’re purchasing a vehicle.
Seventy-seven percent of Canadians aged 25-34 and 76 percent aged 35-44 years old also said they’d consider an EV as their next vehicle purchase. Seventy-six percent of two-car households and 75 percent of households with an annual income between $50,000 and $150,000 would also “consider buying an EV the next time they buy a vehicle.”
However, consumers stated serious concerns around driving range, recharging times, electrical grids, battery performance in winter weather, incentives, and the ability to charge anywhere, anytime. In fact, one in five survey participants said they “wouldn’t wait any longer than five minutes for their EV to charge at a non-home based charging station,” and 90 percent of survey participants said they needed to do “a lot more research,” to find the EV that’s right for them.
The poll also found that 79 percent of participants said they wouldn’t “even consider an EV that doesn’t have a driving range of at least 400 kilometers,” up from 77 percent compared to last year’s survey.
The survey also found that a major challenge for the EV industry lies in consumer perceptions around battery performance in winter. Of the respondents, “64 percent believe EVs aren’t reliable in Canada’s cold harsh winters,” and women (69 percent) were more skeptical than men (60 percent) about winter battery performance.
According to KPMG’s research, the top two brands that prospective Canadian EV buyers are most likely to purchase from are Tesla and Toyota, with Honda as a distant third choice.
The research also found that the auto sector is important to 89% of respondents, who said they “want action taken to grow the country’s EV production and defend the industry against external threats that would harm Canadian exports,” however three in five Canadians said they would prefer to buy an EV from “a company specializing in battery-powered automobiles, none of which currently manufacture in Canada.”
KPMG also found that 49 percent of survey respondents “would buy an EV made by a major technology company,” which was noted as a “trend that automotive executives are already anticipating…[as] a majority of auto industry executives expect Google, Apple, Amazon, Huawei and Samsung to enter the car market with their own branded vehicles.”
Tammy Brown, partner and national leader, industrial markets, KPMG Canada said that the poll findings “show that Canadians appear not only eager to buy EVs but willing to embrace new technology entrants,” adding that “the auto industry of tomorrow will not resemble the one we know today or grew up with.”
