[OrangeMango]

> Less talking and more building, please.

For GM and Ford, building the vehicle is the easy part. At this point, they all know how to build an electric vehicle.

They definitely need to do a lot more talking. They need to normalize the idea. They need the buyers to believe that it's better. These are commercial vehicles, they need to have a lower cost of operation. And buyers have to believe it. So keep talking (and also build them).

[flmlta]

Many consumers believe it's better but can't afford the price of an EV even after incentives.

We don't need more talk, we need better prices. Sub 30k crossovers/hatchbacks is what consumers are buying in droves. These markets aren't exactly flush with EVs or even hybrids.

[hedora]

Those people can’t afford new cars. They probably could afford an LPG conversion kit. Such kits are widely available outside the US, and are a good stopgap technology to reduce CO2 emissions between now and when the fleet is 100% electric.

[flmlta]

Plenty of people can afford new cars, just not necessarily expensive ones. The average price of a new vehicle in the united states is around 35k, but the average price of an electric vehicle is closer to 50k.

If you want the average person to be buying an EV, the price needs to come down.

It should also be mentioned that loan terms for new vehicles are insane right now which is partially why the average price of new cars is so high - GM is offering 84 month, 0% loans on its trucks - today!

[mattlondon]

Also they need to invest in installing a decent charging network, like Tesla has.

Often in the UK you'll see 10 or more Tesla rapid chargers with 200+kw charging rates at key locations, then for everyone else there are perhaps just two 50kw chargers which are either ice'd or broken or both.

Until people see rapid chargers they can actually use in most supermarket and shopping mall's car parks etc it is going to be a hard-sell. We're getting there slowly with things like Ionity, but it is still a rarity to see decent rapid chargers in convenient & plentiful locations.

Of course, for commercial operators this wont be a concern. but for the average joe who doesn't have off-street parking at home then they need a reliable place to refuel.

[leesec]

"At this point, they all know how to build an electric vehicle."

Just not an EV that's profitable that consumers actually want, or can compete with other EV's at similar price point. Tesla Model 3 being best selling car by revenue means consumers are already sold on the idea.

[OrangeMango]

This article is about business vans, not consumer cars. The needs and economics are vastly different.

Do a quick search for 'van upfitter' and see. That's the market they are aiming for. What Tesla offers is completely orthogonal. Given the way that Tesla treats 3rd party repair shops, it's hard to believe that they could possibly make a serious offering in this space.

[michaelt]

Ford's only EV is just a pre-order page, so it's not yet evident to me that they know how to build an electric vehicle.

[OrangeMango]

Ford sold a fully-electric Focus for about 8 years. They've sold multiple generations of plug-in hybrid vehicles, and codeveloped (and sold) a fully-electric delivery van about 10 years ago.

They know how to do it.

[michaelt]

Not well enough to make a product they didn't end up discontinuing.

[fomine3]

There's no reason a manufacturer that makes complicated PHEV can't make BEV.