Electric vehicles are significantly different products from traditional ones, and there’s no doubt that for most motorists, they require a period of adaptation. But there’s growing evidence that that adaptation is progressing. A recent survey by J.D. Power shows that owners of EVs are increasingly satisfied with their vehicles.
And this is as true for products from luxury brands as it is for those from more generic manufacturers.
The J.D. Power survey (officially the U.S. Electric Vehicle Experience Ownership Study) uses a scoring system that gives a result out of 1,000. For top-of-the-range models, J.D. Power registered an average score of 756, up from 750 last year. For mass-market vehicles, the satisfaction score rose from 718 to 725.
What the study also revealed is that the vast majority of electric vehicle owners – 94 percent - are likely to stick with electric when the time comes to shop for a next vehicle. Conversely, only 12 percent report they’re considering a return to a gas-engine model. That adds up to more than 100 percent, of course, but that indicates there is a small minority that remain undecided and are considering both types.
“It's clear that once consumers have entered the world of electric vehicles, they are likely to stay hooked on the technology,” explained Brent Gruber, managing director of J.D. Power's electric vehicle division.
The increase in satisfaction is interesting in that it comes after a decline between 2023 and 2024. The results also reinforce the fact that electric models remain popular, despite changing philosophies in American politics.
Growth continues
J.D. Power reports that electric vehicles accounted for 9.1 percent of market sales in 2024, compared with 8.4 percent in 2023. The company attributes this growth to the addition of models to the range. Clearly, with more all-electric vehicles available to the public, sales are set to grow.
There is still work to be done, however, particularly on the dealer side; the study found that information relayed to new buyers is not always complete. In fact, only 12 percent of respondents said they had been informed of the total cost of owning an EV by their dealer.
The question of accessibility to public charging also remains an issue in the U.S., a situation that will improve in 2025 with more carmakers integrating their models with Tesla's NACS (North American Charging Standard) charging ports, giving owners use of the EV maker’s vast network.
Still, there could be further sales bumps on the road ahead in 2025, given the hostility towards EVs and charging infrastructure on the part of the Trump administration. Current EV incentives are likely to be withdrawn, which could have the same dampening effect has we saw in Germany.
Automakers, who have invested billions in electrification, are keeping a close eye on the situation.
