TORONTO—The journey from gasoline to electric vehicles is underway, but despite the best efforts of manufacturers and electric vehicle advocates, sales to date are dismal and unlikely to change any time soon, according to a top auto market analyst.
This Sunday, Aug. 12, Toronto will host the first annual Electric Vehicle (EV) Day at Yonge-Dundas Square, a featured event of Plug'nDrive Ontario, a provincial initiative aimed at raising awareness of the economic and environmental benefits of EVs.
The event aims to get people excited about EVs and to promote their use. Despite sales that total under 1,000 cars for the entire country, supporters like Brian Millar are enthusiastic.
“They’re safe, reliable, and you‘ll no longer burn gasoline if you go electric,” says Millar, a spokesperson for Plug’nDrive.
Terrible Sales of EVs
But Dennis Desrosiers, founder of DesRosiers Automotive Consultants, says EV sales are currently abysmal and EVs make up less than 0.1 percent of Canada’s vehicle market. That makes them “one of the most hyped technologies ever,” he says.
As far as market share goes, DesRosiers says EVs are virtually invisible.
