Electric vehicles will remain the future of transportation at the end of 2023, as they were at the beginning of the year. But it was a year full of difficult questions that brought with it huge market changes, not only as the vast dimensions of supply and demand turned in the other direction, but also as the industry realigned itself.
While 2023 marked the end of supply chain problems that had dragged on into 2022, it also brought the largest auto workers’ strike in a generation – with electric vehicles taking center stage.
From charging infrastructure reliability to electric vehicle import tariffs and setting standards for battery materials and green hydrogen, the Biden administration has become the center of the electric vehicle economy. It’s a strategic position that has directed much of planned federal spending on electric vehicles to “red” states, as electric vehicles become even more of a national political issue in next year’s presidential election.
While you think about it and wait a few more days until you see ours Winner of the Best Car to Buy award for 2024read on for Green Car Reports’ biggest EV stories of 2023—the five themes that have created a complex tangle of twists that will last well into 2024 in each of these situations.
GM electric vehicles will gain access to Tesla superchargers in 2024
Everyone is switching to Tesla NACS.
By the end of the year, almost every automaker would have announced that they would switch to the Tesla charging port for their future electric vehicles?
At the beginning of 2023, this would have been hard to imagine. But at some point during the year, every other major automaker except Stellantis formalized it.
After Tesla appealed to other automakers to use its connector in November 2022, renamed NACSIn the first quarter of the year, there were industry rumors suggesting that several niche automakers were considering switching to NACS. At first it might have been hard to take them seriously since NACS wasn’t yet a real charging standard. The real turning point – or leap of faith – came in May with a joint announcement by Ford CEO Jim Farley and Tesla CEO Elon Musk of their commitment Tesla port in future Ford electric vehicles and an adapter that allows access to the Supercharger in 2024. Soon after, the cards quickly declined, with GM, Rivian, Volvo and Polestar all following until the end of June, with almost everyone else following in the following months.
Overall, NACS changed the narrative, even if the plug itself was largely a red herring for the shortcomings of public charging. What had been a reluctant admission by automakers in 2022 that public charging was something Tesla was doing better became an opportunity for a fresh start amid growing dissatisfaction with public charging.
Ford F-150 Lightning augmented reality experience
Electric vehicle prices have returned to earth.
After massive price increases in 2022 – some of them at dealers – 2023 became the year of the official price adjustment for electric vehicles. Tesla was the most proactive across-the-board price reductions of up to 20%, announced in January 2023. Prices for used Teslas also fell as more electric vehicles came onto the market. Among several other adjustments Tesla cut prices again on the Model Y and Model 3 in October, but by the end of the year these price changes appeared to stabilize again.
However, Tesla wasn’t the only one. This was one of the models that offer significant RRP reductions Hyundai Ioniq 6, Clear air, Ford Mustang Mach-EAnd Ford F-150 Lightning– The latter still does not completely reverse its premium of almost 50% at base level compared to the originally announced price.
As we approach 2023, the significance of this unprecedented increase is not yet clear. Is volatility still deterring potential buyers?
Rivian Gauge view
Software (almost) killed the electric car.
While the headline above may be exaggerating the situation, at times it seemed as if 2022 was the year of supply chain drama, but 2023 was the year in which overambitious software launches may have slowed EV adoption.
We had already seen the potential of over-the-air updates Adding a driving range, Improved ride and handling and in various cases Free Tesla of some personal recall corrections. You are the future.
But it wasn’t all rosy. In November, Rivian broke the infotainment system in its R1S and R1T electric trucks, but fortunately Rivian was able to cancel the update for most owners, and most affected people quickly received over-the-air relief.
Towards the end of the year, GM Blazer EV deliveries have been interrupted over software issues, and it seems like almost every over-the-air capable model that comes to market has at least one feature that isn’t yet software capable.
Undoubtedly, consumer organizations are concerned with the question: is buying an incomplete product the future?
2024 Chevrolet Blazer EV RS
The electric vehicle tax credit remains a mess.
From that Gap in electric vehicle leasing Due to supply chain requirements and the tax credit’s shift to a dealer-based rebate system in 2024 – all in addition to new household income and price cap requirements – there has been a lot of confusion about the electric vehicle tax credit.
In several places, delays in precise language from the Treasury Department and in direct consumer information from the EPA have left electric vehicle buyers with little way of knowing whether the vehicle they are considering qualifies for a credit or not. Dealers are not ready either.
The Treasury’s full guidance for 2024 was only published on December 1st. That has created less-than-ideal situations for buyers where they have to rely on wording like Tesla’s, suggesting that the Model Y “probably” won’t qualify in 2024 and to situations where GM struggles to change its procurement plans, for example.
And in December, when the EPA listed $99,990 Tesla Cyberbeast as eligible for $7,500 in 2023 (it is not available in 2023 nor for $80,000 or less, among several concerns), even it seemed unclear what qualified and why.
GM and Pilot Company’s electric vehicle charging network
More and more car manufacturers – and retailers – are getting involved directly with the store.
In 2021 and 2022, automakers and retailers began increasing their commitment to charging infrastructure. Perhaps spurred by the success of Tesla Supercharger, a Mercedes fast charging network starts with America and, above all, with a network financed by seven global automakers – for now We calculate– aims to be the first true competitor to the Tesla Supercharger network in size and scope. Further highlights were the first stations in a Pilot GM Networkthe start of one 7Charging network in 7-Eleven branches the opening of one Volvo-Starbucks Networkand a new network with thousands of Chargers from Walmart and Sam’s Club and is operated by Walmart itself – in an apparent dislike of Electrify America.
As Wall Street’s interest in charging networks themselves begins to wane, some have recently observed that commitments from automakers, retailers and companies that see charging as a traffic driver and image booster may actually be the future – and an optimistic trend that could continue regardless what the outcome of next year’s presidential election will be.
