The 10-Second Version (AI Summary)
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What happened: A WSJ columnist drove a 2027 Chevy Bolt from Nashville to New Orleans through the states with the fewest chargers and found it only slightly less convenient than gas.
Why it matters: New EV sales are down, but used EV sales are up 21% and fast chargers keep multiplying.
What to do: Make sure every salesperson can explain how charging works on a road trip.
Somebody walks into your store today with a budget of $20,000 to $30,000. Gas prices have them rattled, and they want to know what they can get.
Two years ago, the honest answer was a short and slightly disappointing list. Today, that list includes EVs, new and used. A Wall Street Journal columnist just drove one through the hardest part of the country to show it, and we covered it on today’s Automotive State of the Union.
Can a $28,995 Chevy Bolt handle a road trip with almost no chargers?
Christopher Mims took a 2027 Bolt from Nashville to New Orleans, through Mississippi and Louisiana, the two states with the fewest EV chargers per person. His conclusion was that the trip was only a little less convenient than it would have been in a gas car.
There were hiccups. At 75 mph, the Bolt’s range fell from its 262-mile EPA rating to about 200 miles, which forced a detour through Hope, Arkansas, and Shreveport. The car’s built-in Google Maps planned every charging stop and warmed the battery on the way in, which cut charging time by about a third. Most stops were Tesla Superchargers, billed automatically to the card on file with GM.
The car planned its own stops, warmed up its own battery and paid its own bill.
What do the EV numbers say right now?
New EV sales: down about 40% from last year, partly because federal tax credits expired
Used EV sales: up 21% year over year, with prices rising too, according to Manheim
Public fast-charging plugs: past 80,000, with nearly 20,000 more added each year
The Bolt’s price: $28,995, against a new-car average approaching $50,000
What happened to the man who rented an EV by accident?
Mims met Jeff Cheetham at a Target parking lot in Bossier City, Louisiana. Cheetham had left an Atlanta rental counter in a Hyundai Ioniq 5 without realizing it was electric, and he was headed to Dallas. He drove about 600 miles searching “EV chargers near me” and often found stations his car couldn’t use. He rolled into that lot with 6 miles of range left. Once Mims helped him download a route-planning app, he made it to Dallas without further trouble.
“After my trip, I would consider an EV in the future.” Jeff Cheetham
So what do you tell the customer with $20,000 to $30,000?
The charging network has caught up faster than customers’ knowledge of it. Cheetham got through on a phone app and a stranger’s help, and your salespeople can be that stranger. That means EV education for the whole team, so anyone on the floor can show how route planning, battery preconditioning and automatic billing work.
A friend asked Paul this exact budget question this week. Once an EV was on the table, he went and test-drove a used Cadillac Lyriq. Affordable used EVs are also on the agenda at ASOTU CON West on November 18.
Whoever gets their team comfortable with this first has an edge, and it won’t last long. Paul estimates about six months.
Hear the full conversation on today’s Automotive State of the Union.
