EV Council slams Government for creating ‘uniquely hostile market to EVs’

The Electric Vehicle Council has slammed the Australian Government for its lack of policies and direction on electric cars following claims that prices of used EVs are surging.

EV Council chief executive Behyad Jafari referenced an auction by Lloyds that today had someone bidding $71,000 on the recently-arrived Tesla Model 3 Rear-Wheel Drive, the most affordable model in the Tesla lineup.

The bid is about $1000 more than the price of a new model – and up to $6000 more than some will pay once they claim the EV rebates and discounts on offer by various states and territories.

EV CALENDAR: Every new electric car due soon
EV FAQ: Your electric car questions answered
EV YEAR AHEAD: Every new electric car coming to Australia in 2022

Dozens of Model 3s listed on Carsales also have some big price tags attached. The most affordable used Model 3 RWD is today listed at $74,999, with some opportunistic sellers asking upwards of $80K.

Little wonder Tesla has applied two prices rises to the Model 3 – adding $4000 to the price of the entry model – over the past few weeks.

“This is a stunning reflection of how the Australian Government has allowed demand to totally outstrip supply on EVs, leaving Australian consumers with the choice between a massive wait or paying above-retail for a used car,” said Jafari, who didn’t hold back in his assessment of the current government’s almost non-existent EV policies.

“The Morrison Government seems to have confused its own myopic views about EVs with those of average Australians, and has completely misjudged how demand would grow.”

Jafari has long called for CO2 regulations in Australia – similar to those in play around the world – arguing they would encourage more fuel efficient vehicles. Even the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries is calling for mandatory CO2 standards.

Currently Australia doesn’t impose any regulations on how much CO2 vehicles sold in Australia can emit and the voluntary targets set up by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries appear to have done little to change the status quo.

Car makers also argue CO2 regulations would put Australia on a level playing field with other countries; without CO2 regulations – and penalties if they’re missed – there’s little incentive for a manufacturer to divert a car from a country that does have them to sell it in Australia.

That’s one reason brands such as Hyundai, Kia, Volkswagen and Ford have not been able to get any or enough EVs to satisfy fast growing demand in Australia.

“Australians have seen right through the nonsense that was peddled by the government about EVs at the last election,” said Jafari. “And they’re now queuing up to buy one. But the shelves are empty because the federal government has made Australia such a uniquely hostile market to EVs.

“Global carmakers are far more interested in selling cars in Europe or the US or even New Zealand, where fuel efficiency standards are established and governments offer unambiguous support to the transition.

“Every Australian who wants to buy an EV should have the same array of options as their counterparts in America or Europe. The fact that they do not is the fault of the federal government and its unique hostility to EVs.”

Hyundai and Kia currently have waiting list that could stretch more than a year for their Ioniq 5 and EV6, while Tesla recently increased the estimated wait time on its popular Model 3 – the top selling prestige car in Australia – from as little as one week to six-to-nine months.

Volvo is another that has customers queuing to own its XC40 Pure Electric.

Al of which creates a bottleneck and leaves would-be-buyers looking for alternatives.

Winners in the long wait for a new EV could be some of the newly arrived brands.

Volvo-owned Polestar, for example, can deliver cars within a couple of months and soon-to-arrive Chinese car maker BYD is quoting August deliveries for its promised Atto 3 SUV.

Crucially the local BYD importer says it can import 15,000 cars annually, which if that supply was matched by demand would make it the top selling EV in Australia.

While that’s unlikely to happen, BYD looks set to benefit from the shortage of new EVs.