If electric cars cost so much, it’s mostly our fault

© Pixabay/capitalstreet_fx06

Today the cheapest electric car on the market is the Dacia Spring. It is the only model offered in France for less than 20,000 euros. An amount that many households cannot afford to spend on a car. A selling price that is too high, which would be responsible for the current slowdown in sales of electric cars.

One might think that this high price is the result of construction difficulties, but This is not the case. It would then be the fault of manufacturers, who would inflate prices to increase margins? Not really.

In reality, making an electric car does not cost very expensive. It’s all the modern equipment that increases the bill by several thousand euros. On paper, an electric car is even cheaper than its thermal cousin.

It is less complex to shape and maintenance costs are lower. It is also wrong to think that the launch of an electric model requires the creation of new production lines. Electric cars could be built on bases common to thermal cars. This is in reality rarely the case today.

Modern comfort has a cost

The rise in prices of electric cars can therefore be explained by the advent in recent years of multiple technologies, each more expensive than the other. This is particularly the case for driving aids, air conditioning, infotainment and screens present in large numbers in current automobiles.

The arrival of all these comfort features is driving up prices, and on this point, electric ones are not particularly affected. For more than a decade, the cost of new cars – both thermal and electric – has increased considerably. This increase in prices is therefore not to be attributed to a new engine, but to increasingly demanding demand.

How to make an inexpensive electric car&nbsp ;?

But car manufacturers know that this requirement only represents a minority of the market. Not everyone has the means to buy a Tesla full option for 70,000 euros.

It is therefore necessary to offer electric models, meeting current environmental obligations, but accessible to the general public. Several firms have already attempted to produce this “people’s car” without knowing the commercial success that goes with it.

In Italy, Fiat bet heavily on the 500e, but the latter was a resounding failure. On the other side of the Alps, Peugeot has had a better start with its e-208 which is starting to become more popular in France. It will have to fight in a few months with the new R5 from Renault, which carries all the hopes (or almost) of the diamond brand.

📍 To not miss any news from Presse-citron, follow us on Google News and WhatsApp.

< /blockquote>

[ ]