




Source: The Washington Post

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Pricing issues
By CaedenV on 10/3/2012 2:37:43 PM , Rating: 2
$36,000 for a base model Leaf
$20,000 for a high-end gas powered hatchback with much better features and feel

Seriously, even at $5/gal (God forbid we see that any time soon), and comparable hatchbacks getting some 30+mpg now the price difference would still be 96,000 miles on gas before you hit a break-even point for the purchase price, and considering you still have to pay for the electricity to put in the car, the real break-even point is much much higher than that.

The issue is not so much in the cost of the car as much as the audience that it is attempting to cater to. This car looks like something for a teenager to drive as a first vehicle; It does not look like the kind of car that respectable adults would enjoy driving to and from the work place, or out and about on errands. If they were to make the body less teen-friendly and made the interior more posh and quiet then they could stand a chance as selling more of these at this price. But kids don't have money, and won't be buying one of these even if they did have that kind of cash to burn.

I think that Tesla has it right: Make EVs drop-dead-gorgeous and rightfully expensive so that people WANT to buy the car. As battery tech prices drop with mass production then start offering cheaper stripped down models that people like myself could afford. I would love to have an EV, but renewable energy should make vehicles LESS expensive, not MORE expensive for a similarly spec'd product, especially considering the inconvenience of current models in the way of top speeds and range.

