This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.
I've totally got the money to buy a new car. My 2005 forester is getting long in the tooth and i'm ready to replace it.
I want a smallish car with the same basic features: AWD, 4door, boxy rear so I can toss a full size mtn bike in there, good in the snow, etc.
My distinct impression is that the manufacturers want to sell high end (all the options and $$) but don't give a shit about usability. Chevy volt comes close but can't take a bike.
I wouldn't exactly call any car that you can throw a full size mountain bike in the back a "small car." I could barely do that with my old Subaru outback.
At this point in time, you're going to be looking at a Kia Niro (sans awd), Subaru Solterra / Toyota Bz4x, plug-in hybrid Crosstrek, EV6, EV9, Ioniq 5, Volvo EX30, C40, XC40, Polestar 3, and Tesla model 3 and Y.
But really what you want to do is to put a hitch on the back with a hitch mounted bicycle rack. They cost about 4 to $500 for a full install and will let you carry a bike without needing a huge car.
Your other option of course is a pickup truck like a Rivian, Lightning or Cybertruck but those will set you back probably $75,000 to $100,000.
Are hybrids still a thing?
Yes the new Ford Maverick has a hybrid option and it's been selling very well.
They refuse to learn about them and actively direct people to ICE vehicles. No shit they are having a 'hard time' selling them. They have tried less than nothing to sell them.
This year, 18% of all automobile sales worldwide were electric cars. In the US, that's about 7%.
I agree with them but not for the reasons they would like, less pushing of EVs more pushing of good public transportation.
"And then not only are EVs more expensive, but their own salespeople are untrained. They don't even know how to answer most of the questions they get. A lot of them have 100–200 percent turnover of their sales staff in a given year," Reigersman told me.
This seems not good. I might have been slightly more sympathetic to the dealers before reading this?
I'm not buying an EV not because of lack of infrastructure or lack of interest, but because the product sucks.
I'm not buying a gas car either for the same product sucking reason, and an active desire to never purchase a gas car again.
I just leased an Ioniq 6 from a Hyundai dealership end of October. The salesperson was great, but she didn’t know anything about EVs, especially their own. She even admitted it was the first one she’s sold.
I went back a week ago and found the same 5 Ioniq 6’s sitting there. I’m pretty sure they’ll stay there for quite a while.
