| Remember that Tesla is still a small company in terms of sales, business units, number of models, certainly only recently are they making a big numbers splash. And they have a charging infrastructure. Big Auto has: - locations to put chargers (dealerships that are often in busy commercial areas close to highways) - lobbying power (to get buildout incentives) - a lot of money, at least right now - lawyers and negotiating power Remember, the grid already exists. A "charging infrastructure" is some last mile wiring and plopping down charger ports, ok, and maybe some review/planning/negotiation with the local power companies. As soon as major companies are all-in (GM, VW currently), then Electrify America won't be able to get away with their crappy service, will build out, and the dealerships will provide a lot of expansion. I believe GM could make a usable near-worldwide charging network in less than a year with their dealerships. I know the dealerships have been a massive foot dragging barrier for EV adoption outside of Tesla, but GM does have some power with them, and the writing should be on the wall. You move to EV, or you are a shady used car lot. |
They might try, but I wouldn't be surprised if dealers parked cars in the spots for charging, had them in locked off areas, had them turned off or otherwise inaccessible, etc. I may be misremembering, but I think this was the case with existing infra at Nissan dealers and the leaf? Might have been GM and the volt? I remember seeing complaints online.
I suspect they'll fail to adapt the same way most large companies fail to adapt when a startup disrupts their existing customer base.
In this case, there's the added element that car manufacturers are also harmed by their legacy dealership relationships.