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GM is stuck producing EVs that consumers don’t want with no hybrid models that consumers do want. What’s the solution?

The Wall Street Journal reports Buyers Want Hybrids.

Dealers who serve on advisory committees to the automaker have urged executives in several recent meetings to add hybrids to GM’s lineup, according to people involved in the discussions. GM has focused on fully electric cars in recent years and largely bypassed hybrids, which pair an internal combustion engine with a small battery and electric motor to boost fuel efficiency.

The dealers said they expressed concern that more customers are looking for a middle ground between conventional gas-engine cars and EVs, which are more expensive and require regular charging.

A GM spokesman declined to comment.

Toyota, Honda, Hyundai and Kia are the major players in the hybrid market. Sales of hybrid vehicles in the U.S. surged more than 50% last year, after a small drop in 2022, according to research firm Motor Intelligence.

The dealers’ pleas for the company to consider adding hybrid models show another dimension of the pressure facing GM Chief Executive Mary Barra as aspects of her EV push stall.

“Customers generally aren’t interested in hybrids, the value proposition there,” Barra said at a Barclays investor conference in 2019. “We believe moving to electric vehicles as quickly as possible is the right thing to do.” 

Nearly 5,000 Dealers Send Second Letter to Biden

CBT News reports U.S. Auto Dealers Send Second Appeal to Biden Over EPA’s Strict Emission Rules.

Nearly 5,000 U.S. auto dealerships have issued a second appeal to President Joe Biden, urging him to reconsider the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed stricter vehicle pollution standards. This appeal comes as the EPA nears a decision on regulations aimed at reducing both climate and health-related emissions.

Despite not receiving a response to their initial November letter, these dealerships are voicing their concerns again. They’re worried about meeting the potentially strictest-ever emissions standards, which are part of a global shift toward all-electric vehicle sales. In the U.S., electric vehicle (EV) sales have been growing. They hit 1.2 million units last year. But, they still represent only a small part of the market.

The letter reads, in part:

“On behalf of our customers, we ask that you pause on the electric vehicle mandate. Wait for the battery supply chain to develop outside the control of China. Wait for the charging infrastructure to support a significant increase in electric vehicles. And wait for the American consumer to make the choice to buy an electric vehicle, confident that they are affordable and won’t strand them because of a lack of charging stations.

Mr. President, we share your belief in an electric vehicle future. We only ask that you not accelerate into that future before the road is ready.”

GM’s Dismal Track Record

GMCAuthority reports GMC Ranks Low In Consumer Reports 2024 Reliability Report

Registering the lowest score for dependability among GM’s four brands, GMC ranked below average from multiple perspectives in the 2024 yearly reliability ratings published recently by Consumer Reports.

Several models ranked much higher than the GMC average according to the CR study, but others ranked among the least dependable vehicles of the study, including some of Big Red’s bestsellers.

The reliability rating operates on a scale of 1 to 100, with 100 being the most reliable possible. GMC came in at 36 points, putting it at 24th place out of 30 brands. It has twice the reliability rating of the 18 points scored by the last-place brand, Chrysler. U.S. automakers as a whole average 39 points, while European brands come in at 46 points and Asian carmakers offer the highest dependability with an average rating of 63.

Some Big Red models are strongly above average, including the GMC Terrain, whose 55 rating puts it on a par with Hyundai, Buick, and Infiniti. The GMC Sierra HD 2500 (51) and GMC Sierra HD 3500 (44) also achieved reliability notably above what is typical for American vehicles. However, the GMC Canyon got a 32 score, the GMC Yukon and Yukon XL both rated 30 points, and the popular GMC Sierra 1500 was least reliable at 29 points.

“Sedans have fallen out of favor with consumers,” observed Jake Fisher, senior CR director, “but as a class they are very reliable.”

SUVs, minivans, and pickup trucks were progressively less reliable, scoring reliability levels of 50, 45, and 41 respectively. Viewing the market with ICE vehicles as the benchmark, hybrids have 26 percent less problems than gasoline and diesel vehicles, while EVs have 79 percent more problems and PHEVs experience 146 more faults than their ICE counterparts.

Chevy Ranks Low In Consumer Reports 2024 Reliability Report

For those seeking a second opinion, please note a Consumer Reports study on Who Makes the Most Reliable New Cars?

Asian automakers are still leading reliability by a wide margin with an overall reliability average score of 63 for the region, on a scale of 1 to 100. Seven of the 10 most reliable brands are from Asian automakers.

European automakers are in second place at 46, with three brands filling out the rest of the top 10 most reliable brands.

Domestic brands trail both with an average score of 39. Each domestic automaker had at least one model that had an average or better reliability ranking, and Buick’s entire lineup scored average or better.

There are interesting insights with the reliability of electrified models this year. Overall, hybrids have 26 percent fewer problems than cars powered by internal combustion engines (ICE). Some standouts include the Lexus UX and NX Hybrid and the Toyota Camry Hybrid, Highlander Hybrid, and RAV4 Hybrid.

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) are more of a mixed bag. As a category, they have 146 percent more problems than ICE vehicles. Several PHEVs are even less reliable than their conventional counterparts, such as the below-average Audi Q5 and Chrysler Pacifica. The latter has the lowest score in our survey, at 14.

Still, there are PHEVs that buck that trend, including standouts such as the Toyota RAV4 Prime and Kia Sportage, which score well above average. The BMW X5, Hyundai Tucson, and Ford Escape PHEVs earn average reliability scores.

How the Brands Stack Up

How EVS Stand Up

Electric cars and electric SUVs don’t fare much better, with average reliability scores of 44 and 43, respectively. At the bottom of our vehicle-type rankings are electric pickup trucks, with an average score of 30.

As more EVs hit the marketplace and automakers build each model in greater numbers, we are seeing that some of them have problems with the EV drive system motors, EV charging systems, and EV batteries (which are different from the low-power 12-volt batteries that power accessories). Owners of the Ford F-150 Lightning and Mustang Mach-E, Genesis GV60, Hyundai Ioniq 5, Kia Niro EV and EV6, Subaru Solterra, Toyota bZ4X, and Volkswagen ID.4 all reported some of these issues.

GM is Stuck

Not only does GM make below average cars, it is on a path for EVs that consumers don’t want.

GM will have to ride this mess out. It couldn’t reverse course now if it wanted to. Here’s why: If GM rushed to make a hybrid, would you buy it?

I wouldn’t. Nor would I buy any new model of any kind from GM.

Why Does GM Sell So Many Cars?

In case you are wondering how GM continually sells below average cars, the answer is tariffs. Trump and Biden both have placed huge tariffs on foreign vehicles in an attempt to force people to buy US brands and overpay for them.

I am a happy Toyota 4-Runner owner.

But I have no problems with EVs other than cost, reliability, charging issues, insurance, operation in cold weather, resale value, and the sad fact that they don’t do a damn thing for the environment.

Obamacare Comparison

Unlike Obamacare doctors, if you like your EV, you can keep it.

Meanwhile, please note Biden did not reply to the 5,000 dealers in November and he probably will not respond to this second letter in January either.

Lack of Customer Demand

On January 11, I noted Hertz Is Selling 20,000 EVs Due to Lack of Customer Demand

Hertz said that it would sell about 20,000 EVs in the U.S., and use some of the proceeds to purchase internal-combustion-engine vehicles. The company in a regulatory filing cited weaker demand for electrics, and their higher operating costs.

Despite Huge Incentives, Supply of EVs on Dealer Lots Soars to 92 Days

On July 13, 2023, I noted Despite Huge Incentives, Supply of EVs on Dealer Lots Soars to 92 Days

EV inventory is piling up on dealer lots. Hello car manufacturers, what are you going to do with all that inventory?

Firm Answer to My July 13 Question

• October 24, 2023: GM Scraps EV Target, Ford Scales Back Electric Trucks, Musk Warns of Challenges
• To Shore Up Share Price, GM Decreases EV Investment in Favor of Buybacks

Wake Up Mr. President, Consumers Don’t Want EVs

On October 16, 2023 I commented Wake Up Mr. President, Consumers Want Hybrids, Not EVs

Three months later, consumers still don’t want EVs.

That statement is guaranteed to rile up the EV lovers prone to respond with percentages of how fast EV demand is growing. So I will nip the nonsense in advance.

When you have 3 percent of the market and soar to 4.5 percent of the market, that is a 50 percent gain coupled with hype announcements of soaring demand.

Lovely. GM is stuck with a slew of new EV models coming down the pike so lets see what it does with them and how reliable they are.

Only 6 Percent in the US want an EV for their Next Vehicle

Only six percent want an EV for their next vehicle but 67 percent want an ICE up from 58 percent last year.

On January 15, I noted Only 6 Percent in the US want an EV for their Next Vehicle

Many EV devotees questioned that number.

If they read Consumer Reports, GMCauthority, or watched Tesla Charging Stations in Chicago Lined With Dead Cars and Zero Temperatures in Chicago, perhaps they would reconsider.

Seeking the Green Utopia

Despite the inconvenient facts, the US and EU governments are hell bent on pushing everyone they can into EVs.

The sad reality is a Green utopia will never exist. Meanwhile, the US and EU are Quietly Killing Vital Industries.

Finally, in China where EVs are soaring, China is still rapidly adding coal power plants to produce the needed electricity. Hooray?

But hey, thanks to government coercion and tax breaks, many will buy EVs and regret it.

For those who do like their EV, congrats, you can keep them. They are perfect for people who don’t go anywhere and like to brag about being environmental trend setters.

Lower Cost, Fast Charging, Organic Batteries to Power EVs

Don’t get me wrong, EVs are coming, by coercion if necessary.

And eventually, they may make complete sense especially if battery technology advances work as promised.

For discussion, please see MIT Develops Lower Cost, Fast Charging, Organic Batteries to Power EVs

The technology seems very promising so assume it works. There are still two key questions:

How fast can this scale to full production? When will the infrastructure be ready?

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