The issue for the industry is that EVs need regulatory crutches and hype to sell to the masses.
The likes of MB are caught in a pincer movement - they are forced via regulation to shift their capital manufacturing base and customers to EVs. At the same time Tesla is hyped in stock market such that it appears to out compete them and is hyped by customers and doesn't have an exiting ICE customer base.
EVs are not selling to the masses on merit. You mention company cars. The economics of company cars mean the government has higher leverage on pushing EVs in that market. The government leverage is the money of the masses. You may not own an EV or even have a driving licence - but you are effectively subsidising them regardless.
The Ioniq is a decent vehicle. But compare it with an A Class. The compromises are that it's not as nice internally as MB's cheapest car - which ironically is in the price zone of the Ioniq. I took a wander around my local city today (Glasgow) and lots of cars about. It's still notable to see an EV on the move or parked. They are still rare. Why is this? EVs are not that new. Charging points have been around for years. I'd guess you see more EVs in London .... but then that's what you get with control such as congestion charging and ULEZs.
When Tesla were taking deposits on the S (that seems like a l...o...n...g time ago) there were those who seriously believed it would cost around £30,000. There has been a huge amount of optimisim and belief about EVs. We even have amazing 'Turbo' EVs from Porsche. (Pretty amazing making a turbocharger work with an electric motor? Do they spin the turbocharger electrically or do they just fit it and let it sit idle?).
I'm really cynical about the way this is being handled.
@Dryce I don't agree with you about MB. They failed to adapt quickly. They are behind in EVs, despite having a stake in Tesla many years ago and doing some initial collaborations. They thought that they could add a bunch of plug in hybrids, and that would be enough for "electrification" of their portfolio and enough to reduce their overall emissions. VW have managed to adapt, with their MEB platform and the ID cars. We here in the UK often fail to realise that the biggest market for MB in the world is China, which also happens to be the biggest EV market in the world too. The Korean companies have managed to adapt.
I don't see what the market cap of Tesla has to do with MB making half decent EVs? They do out compete MB, when it comes to EV sales. Their technology is years ahead of anyone else, including MB. I remember how my C350e had a check engine light come on, and I took it to the dealer, and had to leave the car for 2 days, and it turned out the car needed a software update! Contrast that when I had a Tesla in the US and I returned from eating at a restaurant to find the car had installed a software update over 4G whilst I'd had my meal. Tesla cars are not perfect and the company has their own issues, but they are forcing people to think differently about cars and how they work.
EVs are not selling to the masses, full stop. I'm not saying that they do. Despite EV sales growing rapidly, they still comprise a tiny portion of all cars registered on our roads. EVs at present are for the affluent or those with jobs that enable them to have company cars that are £40k and up. It reminds me of mobile phones when they first came out which were unaffordable to the masses, but fast forward, and now you have little kids with their own mobile phones. Price parity of EVs vs ICE will take time.
The masses don't tend to buy brand new cars anyway (regardless of fuel source), so it's going to be a quite a long time before we have a used EV market with enough of a range of cars in the way that someone can buy a 10-15 year old ICE car today for a relatively small cash outlay. The narrative that we as a society are going to all switch to EVs overnight is nonsense.
I wasn't comparing the Ioniq with the A class, but with the EQA, as an electric vehicle, primarily in terms of efficiency. Yes, like I said, price parity is not there on EVs vs ICE yet. Battery packs are still expensive.
Regarding London/SE - A sizeable population and lots of affluent people live here, so no wonder I see so many EVs, even in the suburbs. I live in what's considered a "poor" part of London, yet half the cars on neighbours driveways are Mercs less than 5 years old! Regarding congestion charge and ULEZ as an incentive for people to switch to an EV in London, hardly any private motorists drive their own car into the congestion charge zone and with the ULEZ, one could drive a 2008 C63 AMG and still be exempt from the ULEZ charge! When I've met people in the EV community down here (all brands), their primary motivation for switching is for environmental reasons/financial savings on fuel etc. Although some buy for the feeling of instant torque and fun acceleration. Even in the budget EVs, it's hilarious in urban traffic to pull away from the lights quicker than an ICE sports car.
I don't have an issue with you being cynical, I respect your opinion and it's healthy to have conversations with people who have different perspectives. As you point out there is a great deal of optimism about EVs, and so much is being invested in the entire industry (BTW, are all of these corporations around the globe who are investing billions, completely crazy, from your perspective?)
As a society, we do need to reduce emissions from road transport (and other sources), but unless we suddenly decide to drive fewer miles every year to play our part, I'm curious what alternative method you propose to reduce emissions from road transport this century, if EVs aren't something worth pursuing?
I would clarify the "vehicle" definition however which would eliminate E bikes and scooters as we know them at present--in the UK they need to protect the driver from the elements , provide a safety cell if by necessity they are sharing the road with larger heavier vehicles, and be capable of carrying a second passenger or decent load/ luggage and a reasonable daily range to tick all the boxes???
