Slowing demand: A potential buyer checking out an EV. While fully electric cars and trucks made up 10% of all auto sales in the United States in the third quarter, 15% of transactions were for hybrid vehicles. — Bloomberg
NEW YORK: Like most US car dealers, Scott Kunes has some electric vehicle (EV) whiplash.
In the third quarter, he sold EVs like ice cream at the beach.
However, after federal purchase incentives expired at the end of September, those models have been tough to move at his company’s 50 or so Midwest stores selling about 20 different brands, from Mitsubishi to Mercedes-Benz.
But buyers aren’t necessarily turning to petrol guzzlers.
On Kunes’ lots, hybrid vehicles are in high demand, a preference that’s playing out across the country.
While fully electric cars and trucks made up 10% of all auto sales in the United States in the third quarter, 15% of transactions were for hybrid vehicles.
The EV market is slowing in the United States, but analysts expect hybrid sales to continue accelerating.
CarGurus Inc, a digital listings platform that covers most of the US auto market, predicts nearly one in six new cars next year will be a hybrid, as automakers green-light more and better machines with the technology.
And though these cars and trucks will still burn petrol, they will quietly move the needle on both transportation emissions and the transition to fully electric cars and trucks.
Kunes is even more bullish; he figures in the near future, more than half of his business will be hybrid vehicles.
“We have so much investment in EV and battery technology, and we need to figure out the best possible use of it,” he said.
“There’s a lot to be said for hybrids becoming the most dominant powertrain out there and real soon.”
With federal purchase incentives worth up to US$7,500 wiped out by the Trump administration,
EV sales are expected to plunge 30% in the fourth quarter and remain flat through much of next year.
But Americans worried about affordability see hybrids as a pragmatic way to cut fuel expenses and emissions.
“They offer consumers a little bit of everything,” said Peter Nagle, associate director of Americas demand forecasting at S&P Global Mobility.
“I think the demand is only going to keep going from here. Their utilitarian nature might appeal more to rural, red state customers,” he added.
CarGurus calls hybrids the success story of 2025.
Indeed, the fastest-selling car in the country this year has been the Hyundai Palisade hybrid; it sat on lots for fewer than 14 days on average.
Of the roughly 390 distinct car models on the US market, roughly 87 are available with hybrid technology, nearly 50% more options than drivers had five years ago, according to Edmunds.com.
While carmakers have struggled to turn a profit on full EVs, analysts say their investments in batteries and electric motors are helping them sell more and better hybrid machines. — Bloomberg
