How much of this is because because emission standards in the US reward heavier vehicles, and vehicles over 3.5t get tax benefits and skew the market in the opposite direction than in most (all?) other countries?
Not much when the big trucks outsell the small luxury cars. The most I could get a bmw m3 configured for was $86000, it wasn't hard to get a f150 over $100k.
If money mattered you can look at the toyota corolla for much less than the cheapest f150.
Enthusiasts want small trucks. Americans don't want small trucks. They don't want a single-cab S10. They wouldn't even want a double cab S10. What they actually want is a minivan but they're too far into not-cool territory to be a consideration so they look to the mid/full-size SUV and/or truck segment. It is true that you can't really make a small truck in the US any more, and that automakers do like it that way, but it wouldn't change anything even if you changed the CAFE requirements.
As I said, they already cost more than smaller and cheaper alternatives. But people buy them anyway.
Heavily vehicles may be cheaper for whatever reason you cite. But they are still much more expensive than smaller sedans. People still buy the heavier vehicles.
It's not 3.5 tons, it's the footprint (track width * wheelbase).
The emissions standards reward larger vehicles that generally start around $35k-$40k. Americans just love going immediately underwater on a $100k Grand Wagoneer.
Tesla's success shows that people want high-quality EVs. And if competition in the local EV market drives quality up and prices down, they will become more and more compelling to consumers. But tariffs isolate domestic manufacturers from foreign competition where the latest advancements are currently being made. American manufacturers are already not competitive in the global market.
But perhaps most importantly, we must transition from fossil fuels to avoid the most dire possible outcomes of climate change. It doesn't matter if you enjoy a pipe after dinner, you can't smoke in a family restaraunt because it would harm the well-being of the other diners.
"Smaller and cheaper" isn't the best comparison point, "same size but cleaner" would be a more interesting one. And AFAICT larger electric cars cost considerably more than most of the gas options in the US.
An internal combustion F-150 costs less than an electric one, I believe the same is true for the Maverick though to a lesser degree. The hybrid Maverick does gangbusters with similar prices; if the electric F-150 cost the same as the gas one and there was a hybrid one at the same price I'd wager that you'd see a lot more uptake than you do of the current Lightning.
I live in Australia. Electricity here costs around USD$0.20/kWh, unless you are prepared to charge when the wind is blowing, or the sun is shining, in which case it costs USD$0.05/kWh. $0.05/kWh equates to around USD$1.20 per 100 miles for a car that gets 50 miles to the gallon.
That's assuming you have to pay for it. I charge my car from my roof top solar, so it costs nothing.
The resale value for EV's isn't good, but the reason is battery prices are dropping, and batteries are the primary cost of an EV. They dropped 30% in the last year. If that continues, it's all over for US car makers once the tariffs go away.
Where I live in the us I save $200 per month with ev vs gas. This is replacing a minivan with essentially the same but 10 years newer. Of course my power all tmes fron wind which is cheap
We’re saving way more than that. Probably the equivalent of $70-90 per “gas tank”. Old car was a late model truck of the same form factor.
The resale values on used EVs are poor because things are improving so fast. The new ones are better and cheaper, which isn’t really the case for ICE models.
The only exceptions are the first few years of Leaf’s, since they ate batteries, and teslas because of the non-removable MAGA bumper stickers.
Unfortunately the older EVs don't really have enough range for some of the things I want an older car for (going to camp - I expect to scratch the car so rentals are out)
We had an ICE truck for this purpose for a while. The used long range replacement had a lower MSRP (and we paid less for it), and it’s a better pickup / more capable pickup truck).
I pay roughly €1 for every 100km I drive here in Ireland. My annual car road tax is €120 in stead of 200+. My annual service involves kicking the tires and having a peek under the car.
I bought my ev used for 16k, with a basically brand new battery (mandatory recall) still under warranty. I'm not gonna resell it, I'm probably gonna keep it till the wheels fall off.
But Americans can hope for a regime (policy) change every few years though. You could argue both the political ideologies are broadly doing the same shit, but you can hope or lobby for change. On the other hand, imagine your unfavourite politician/ideology remaining in power for the eternity!
quite the opposite is and will be happening. same in his first term and same in 2nd/3rd/4th… america “first” all that (this term is including nationalizing businesses like intel which you know, works in beacons of capitalism like venezuela…)
