According to a research, more auto purchasers want to acquire hybrid vehicles as their next vehicle rather than electric vehicles, despite the fact that the former is more expensive. According to Deloitte’s 2024 Global Automotive Consumer Study, factors including as charging time, charging infrastructure availability, and battery technology safety continue to limit quicker adoption of BEVs.
Nearly 36% of respondents questioned in 2024, compared to 32% in 2023, stated they would choose hybrids or PHEVs over BEVs, while 10% preferred BEVs. In comparison to 2023, the number of people choosing hybrids has increased by 4 percentage points, which is twice as much as the number of those expected to choose EVs. In addition, there is an increasing desire to acquire a non-traditional engine car (53% in 2024 against 49% in 2023) over petrol and diesel.
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The desire to purchase hybrids over pure battery electric vehicles rises even as EVs benefit from state and federal government-funded subsidies, allowing manufacturers to price them lower than hybrids. This is despite hybrids being more expensive than electric vehicles. “People choose hybrids over EVs because they offer peace of mind that EVs cannot,” says Rajeev Singh, partner and customer market leader at Deloitte Asia Pacific.
PHEVs utilize batteries to power an electric motor and another fuel, such as gasoline or diesel, to power an internal combustion engine (ICE). PHEVs can be charged by a wall outlet or charging equipment, the ICE, or regenerative braking.
“In India, while consumers talk about environmentally friendly technology, not many have the ability to pay when it comes to hitting the rubber to the road,” said Mr. Singh. Subsidies play a vital role in bridging the gap. One of the reasons EV manufacturers in India would like the incentives to continue for the next few years till EV penetration reaches 20%, said Singh.
