While awareness is high and knowledge has increased since a Maritz Research 2006 poll, few consumers today purport to be very familiar with either electric-only, flex fuel or gasoline-hybrid vehicles. In the last five years, the percentage of consumers “very familiar” with:

• Electric-only vehicles doubled from 8 to 16%;
• Flex-fuel (E85) vehicles rose from 12 to 17%; and
• Gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles rose from 15 to 22%.
• 13% said they were very familiar with clean diesel and 6% with hydrogen.

Our research indicates that over time consumers see the adoption of electric-power and other alternative power-train vehicles as an imminent reality. Yet today, low consumer familiarity and understanding of alternative fuel vehicles - including both electric only and gasoline-electric hybrids - has a cooling effect on their purchase intent.

This research is instructive for auto manufacturers, dealers and other stakeholders as to current consumer perceptions that should either be corrected or reinforced. It shows that consumers require more education about the product options and characteristics associated with individual brands and technologies. While OEMs have been focusing on familiarity, increasing consumer knowledge will enable higher sales conversions to new drive-train technologies.

—Dave Fish, Ph.D., vice president, Maritz Research

Overall survey respondents voiced positive opinions of alternative vehicles and their benefits:

• 74% said they felt that alternative fuel vehicles were good because they reduced dependence on foreign oil;
• 68% said they would consider obtaining an alternative fuel vehicle because it was better for the environment;
• 59% said an alternative vehicle is appealing because it costs less to operate than a gas vehicle.

Just 25% of respondents labeled electric vehicles a fad and said they would not consider purchasing this alternative fuel technology. Other general findings about EVs included:

• 59% said they don’t know enough about electric vehicles to consider one as their next purchase;
• 55% said that an electric car is a “good choice for a second car within my household, but not a good choice for my primary vehicle.”
• 57% of respondents said that an electric vehicle is only practical if you do very limited driving; and
• 17% of respondents said that they would want to “purchase an electric car as soon as it is available in their market.”

The Maritz Research study indicates that a low understanding about product and category characteristics may contribute to the low level of familiarity of alternative fuel vehicles.

While 39% of consumers are familiar with the Chevrolet Volt, among those respondents who stated they were familiar with the model, fewer than half correctly understood some of its significant characteristics:

• Only 32% of those familiar with the Volt agreed with the correct statement that, “The Chevrolet Volt has a range extending gas generator that produces enough energy to propel it for up to 300 additional miles.”
• 38% of respondents knew that “with the Chevrolet Volt, most people can commute back and forth to work for $1.50 a day.”

Familiarity about the Nissan Leaf stood at 17%, and product knowledge for some of its characteristics was also low among those familiar with the car:

• 30% of those familiar with the Leaf agreed with the correct statement that “the battery pack that runs the Nissan Leaf should last around 100,000 miles.”
• 31% said they understood that at a quick-charge station using 480 volts, a charge for a Leaf takes about 30 minutes
• 50% of respondents knew that the “Nissan Leaf can run for up to 100 miles before it needs to be plugged in to recharge it.”

Having been on the market for more than a decade, the Toyota Prius garnered a 75% familiarity rating. However, even some of the Prius’ product characteristics were not universally understood. For example, only 57% of those familiar with a Prius understood that it does not need to be plugged in.

The data indicates that consumers are still confused about these new technologies. This confusion will continue to be a barrier to widespread adoption of alternative fuel vehicles.

—Dave Fish

Maritz Research conducted the study with 1,207 licensed drivers representative of Americans 18 years of age or older; a total of 150 individuals intending to purchase a vehicle within the next year were interviewed. Quotas were set up to capture respondents living in geographic areas where Chevrolet Volt (n=305) and Nissan Leaf (n=197) are launching. The study’s results were weighted based on licensed driver data from the US Department of Transportation. The study occurred between 22 October and 8 November 8 2010.