As gasoline prices are on the rise, Electric car prices are going up again, which could slow down the transition from fuel vehicles to electric vehicles (EVs).
An electric car costs $61,000 while a fuel car costs around $46,000. The gap between prices makes EVs only fit for a bunch of people. And just as EVs cars were lowering their prices, last week, Tesla raised the prices to $6,000 per car, according to Edmunds.
Simultaneously, gasoline prices have risen in the past two years dramatically. Since 2021 the inflation rate has gone up to 49.6%, according to the U.S inflation calculator. An average American spends $1834 per year on gasoline, according to Utility Smarts.
Besides, a normal fuel car is not affordable to most Americans, their prices have inflated as well, according to Dallas Morning News.
“It’s clearly a product for the upper crust. It’s going to be a long time before electric vehicles are the majority of cars on the road.” explained in an interview with Bloomberg, Charlie Chesbrough, a senior economist at Cox Automotive.
In November 2021 at the Glasgow climate talks COP26, analysts predicted that from 2025 to 2027 EVs would reach the fuel cars prices, but the recent rise in their prices represents a step back on the goals set for 2030, according to Sky News.
Ford, Toyota, and Stellantis are some of the companies that are betting on EVs, although the production is still very expensive. Raising raw materials to build the batteries is the main expense for making EVs.
These three companies have written a letter to Congress asking to waive limits on the $7,500 federal tax to make more affordable cars and reach middle-class customers. According to Detroit Bureau Chief David Welch, car companies in order to sell to the middle class will have to reach a cost-effective scale on batteries.