Top 5 Challenges Facing Electric Vehicle Manufacturers

It’s no secret that electric vehicles are quickly becoming the way of the future, with brands like Cadillac projecting to sell only electric vehicles by the end of this decade. Nissan is targeting the early 2030s to have their entire line electrified, and numerous others are following suit. Consumers are adapting with the times, but challenges remain on the path to widespread electric vehicle sales. The good news is solutions are in the works for each of these challenges, and electric vehicle partners like Tweddle Group are at the ready to make those solutions a reality.

1. The Stigma of Higher Up-Front Cost

Leading off our list of challenges is cost. Money makes the world go ’round, and consumers considering a purchase of an electric vehicle are no different than anyone else in that price is among the top factors in their decision process.

The research bares out the fact that the cost to operate an electric vehicle is far less than that of a traditional car. In fact, in 2018, the University of Michigan’s Transportation Research Institute conducted a study that placed that figure at half the cost for electric vehicles over gasoline engine models. This obviously fluctuates somewhat with the cost of gasoline and electricity, but the fact remains that the higher up-front cost is offset over the course of time with lower cost of ownership, not to mention subsidies and tax credits that are often available.

That means it’s key to educate consumers about the difference between the sticker price in the dealer showroom and the cost of operation over the life of the electric vehicle.

2. There’s Less to Choose From

Internal combustion engine vehicles have dominated the market for over a century, so it’s no surprise given that massive head start that there are more varieties of those vehicles currently available. There are simply fewer options to choose from when it comes to electric vehicles.

But change is unfolding as we roll deeper into the decade of the 2020s. Electric cars are no longer just small, economical cars. Different niches, from bigger trucks to sporty vehicles, are gradually coming on board in the electric vehicle market, and they will naturally continue to do so as manufacturers push toward initiatives of going full EV for their entire fleet within the decade. The key here is educating consumers that this trend is real and that the selection and availability for electric vehicles is about to skyrocket.

Once again, informing the customer of this development is crucial. If people are stuck in stereotypical thinking of what an electric car is and is not, sales will be slower to take off.

3. Old Habits Die Hard

Drivers are used to reading traditional gauges and meters. A gas gauge is easy – it shows that the tank is full, empty, or somewhere in between. Deciphering information in an electric vehicle is a little more nuanced. How much charge is left? How do driving habits and environmental conditions affect the remaining range of the vehicle? How is the energy in the vehicle being utilized and optimized?

The on-vehicle software in electric vehicles goes a long way in removing the mystery around these factors, but it is important to remember that for first-time buyers, these are all new, and oftentimes intimidating experiences. For adult drivers, this can mean breaking down decades’ worth of comfort and routine, which can be daunting.

As with the challenge of vehicle variety and availability, the solution here is customer education. Knowledge is power, and in this case, the power of electric vehicles is easy to prove.

4. Are We There Yet? With Charging Infrastructure, Not Quite

For anyone who lives in a large city or suburb, the thought of not being able to find a gas station never really crosses their mind. There are usually a handful of stations within less than a mile. Even in more sparsely populated areas, it’s usually not too difficult to find a gas station before the needle drops down to E.

For those who are still hesitant to make the leap to electric vehicle ownership, the thought of keeping their vehicle charged is more like finding a gas station in the middle of the most remote mountainous county. Again, the thought is framed around the old way of doing things. But it is hard to blame them, because at present, the charging infrastructure is indeed lacking in many parts of the country. Until that shortfall is resolved, range anxiety will be a real hurdle to increasing the sales of electric vehicles.

Fortunately, the solution to this issue should be partially self-correcting. As supply floods into the marketplace to meet demand, the needed infrastructure will be built in response to the shift in vehicle sales. Between government initiatives and manufacturer goals, vehicles are transitioning to electric at a rapid pace. The biggest challenge in this regard is bridging the gap created by the lag in time it will take to increase and expand the current infrastructure.

5. Offering Qualified Service—and Creating Better Support Information

OK, so even once these concerns are addressed – whether it’s cost anxiety and vehicle selection, or lack of customer knowledge and electric vehicle infrastructure – the cynic may still say, “What about when my electric vehicle needs service? Where do I go then?” Right now, those critics may very well have a point, as finding service for an electric vehicle means going only to the dealership or a specialty repair shop.

Like the question of charging infrastructure, part of the solution is the market adapting to meet the needs of the consumer. As electric vehicles gain an increasingly strong foothold in market share, many repair shops will have the incentive to adapt their knowledge and services to include electric vehicle repair.

But there are better solutions than simply sitting back and waiting for the market to solve problems organically. Electric vehicle operation is complex, and the issues of repair that often result from those complexities demand a higher level of product service and product operational information.

Manufacturers should choose their information partners carefully. Finding a partner with the right expertise and experience will help bridge the gap between an electric vehicle and its owner or service technician.

Companies are advised to make their content as targeted as possible. It should be authored and leveraged so the service technician or end-user only encounters information relevant to the electric vehicle in front of them. Making information as product-specific—or VIN-specific—as possible reduces confusion and heightens the ease of use and ease of service.

Translation is one area where information distribution may become highly complex—and extremely expensive. Companies need to make sure an information partner applies proper content translation processes to ensure the quality and accuracy of their electric vehicle support information, and to maintain low costs and operational efficiency.

Lastly, electric vehicle manufacturers should find a partner specializing in multi-channel delivery. Users and technicians expect to find product information on the most logical device—smartphone, tablet or center stack touchscreen—and in a situationally-ideal format—whether that’s, PDF, print, video or voice. Companies should collaborate with their information partner to audit user needs and determine which channels are right for each portion of content, and that the content is fully searchable and easy to access.

Most of these concerns tie back into the question of how the information is originally produced. An optimized live-content authoring system produces highly flexible information which transitions seamlessly between languages, channels and formats.

By offering customers crucial electric vehicle product support on-demand, at the point-and-time of need, companies can reduce the need for service, improve customer loyalty and lower the costs of warranty repair.