CarGurus Study Finds Rising Canadian Consumer Interest in Electric Vehicles Despite Cost, Charging Barriers

Tesla still top brand among consumers, followed by Toyota, Honda

CarGurus, a multinational, online automotive platform for buying and selling vehicles, announced its latest Canadian consumer sentiment study on electric vehicles (EVs). The CarGurus 2022 Electric Vehicle Insight Report examined consumer feedback on a variety of EV-related topics like timeline to ownership, possible barriers to adoption, and preferred brands.

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Since last year, interest in electric vehicles has risen steadily – 40% of respondents said they would be likely to own an EV in the next five years (up from 32% in 2021), and 60% said they expected to own one in the next ten years (up from 54% in 2021). Younger people were especially excited about adoption, with over two thirds of car owners between the ages of 18 and 29 expecting to own an EV in the next decade. Older shoppers showed gains in interest, too, suggesting that the target audience for EVs is expanding.

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While excitement around EVs is growing, there are still major barriers to adoption for some – key issues include the costs of EVs and the charging experience. For these reasons, respondents said they could be best convinced to make the switch if they were offered tax incentives (46%), better access to chargers (45%), better range or charging time (45%), and cost parity with internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles (44%).

Tesla has been the top brand choice for consumers year after year, and this year is no different – 47% of potential EV buyers said they would consider purchasing a model from Tesla, followed by Toyota (38%), Honda (29%), and Hyundai (23%). For hybrids, consumers are most likely to consider Toyota (40%), Honda (33%), Hyundai (22%), and Ford (20%).

“Despite barriers like access to charging and high costs, consumers are beginning to more seriously consider investing in electric vehicles.” said Alexandra Howerter, Senior Consumer Insights Analyst at CarGurus. “As automakers bring new EV models to the market, the pool of potential shoppers has expanded, with older shoppers more interested than ever.”

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