Electric vehicles | Should we trust young shoots?
Tesla's success makes people envious. Starting from nothing, Rivian, Lucid, Fisker and many others are joining the electric parade in the hope of also triumphing against long-established brands.
These automobile companies, often emerging from nowhere, have a lot of ambition. They say they are ready to challenge, even overthrow, traditions. They do not always have the means to achieve their ambitions. Many are financially fragile, which poses a certain risk for consumers (spare parts, repairs, maintenance, software updates, etc.).
Difficulties
Over the past few years, several of these brands have made headlines with products that never hit the streets. Among those who have passed this milestone, many are juggling a meager cash flow and shareholders who are increasingly reluctant to invest. It's probably a good idea to consult, among other things, the stock market indices before making your choice. This data does not tell the whole story.
Thus, a firm like Lucid, owned by PIF, the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia, was recapitalized last year and ensures that it has the liquidity required to hold on until 2025… Rivian is also staying the course , even though its stock market share has fallen by $118 in less than three years. The young American company believes it will be able to sell 57,000 units of its R1T electric van and its battery-powered SUV, the R1S, by December 31. As for the Fisker company, whose Ocean is one of the flagship models at the Montreal Electric Vehicle Show, it is currently fighting for its survival. On Wall Street, it is estimated that none of these brands born in the 21ste century is not profitable.
Be careful, then
The most basic caution is to wait until the reliability case builds up a bit. A distrust that dissipates very quickly among many new consumers of electric vehicles.
There are many excuses for turning a blind eye. Among these, we find the presumed greater reliability of electric vehicles and the urgency of acting to benefit from government aid. Therefore, it is not surprising to see that many buyers jump at the first opportunity that comes along, sometimes without even assessing their needs. Enough to lie to those who claim that consumers are more informed than in the past.
