Successfully Bringing EREVs to the US Market
EREVs are Coming to America.
- EREVs have rapidly become an important part of the electrified vehicle market in China, demonstrating that consumers will embrace electric-first vehicles that provide extended range when needed.
- Now EREVs are coming to North America. Ford, Stellantis, Scout, Hyundai, Kia and Volvo are among the manufacturers developing or planning electric-first, extended-range vehicles for the North American market. Chinese-developed EREVs are also reaching Europe and Mexico, giving North America additional markets to learn from.
- American consumers will soon be introduced to EREVs across vehicle segments including those where full battery-electric adoption has proven most difficult. That's important because EREVs can play two distinct roles in America's transition to electric driving.
- For many drivers, they can provide an on-ramp to EV adoption — allowing people to experience everyday electric driving without requiring them to depend on public charging for longer trips.
- For others — including rural drivers, people who routinely travel long distances, tow, work off-road, or live where public charging may never be economically practical at scale — EREVs may be a long-term solution in their own right.
- So this should just take care of itself, right?
- In a word, no.
Let's get the Category Right.
- EREVs remain poorly understood, and the language used to describe them is still evolving. Some manufacturers call them EREVs or REEVs. Others place them within their broader plug-in-hybrid offerings. That's not necessarily a problem. EREVs do fit within the broader PHEV category. But the distinction matters. EREVs occupy the electric-first end of the spectrum - substantial battery range and performance for everyday driving, with gasoline available to provide additional range when needed.
- Getting that distinction right matters because first impressions matter. A consumer who sees “PHEV” and assumes they all get 30-60 miles of electric range before reverting to gasoline is going to miss what makes an EREV different - and why it might be right for them.
- To successfully launch EREVs in the US:
- We don’t need to invent new technology.
- We don’t need to complete a nationwide charging network.
- We don’t need drivers to change their driving habits.
- What we will need is clarity and alignment among automotive OEMs, dealers and suppliers, policymakers, regulators, journalists and other organizations that will shape the market. Get that right, and EREVs become more than a new vehicle category. They can bring millions of drivers into electric driving sooner - while providing an electric-first solution where battery-only vehicles may not be the best fit.