- A new report says almost all current Canadian EV owners would buy another, rather than go back to gasoline
- Most EV owners surveyed drive their vehicles more than the national average, the CAA survey found
- But, as expected, public charging infrastructure is still a concern for many of them
From sea to shining sea, Canadians are fond of their EVs — well, despite some concerns over charging them up, mind you. That’s the conclusion of a couple of new reports issued by CAA, which looked at Canadian EV owners overall and, separately, at drivers in British Columbia.
The Canada-wide survey, with a healthy sample size of 16,000, found that almost 9 out of 10 electric-vehicle owners are “likely” to buy another EV, with 82% reporting they are “highly likely” to buy another. Only 3% said they were willing to consider going back to something that requires gasoline or diesel to make it go. Slightly more than half of EV owners also own a petroleum-powered vehicle, but among those who own both, 96% consider the EV to be their primary vehicle. Lower costs for “refuelling” and maintenance are among the main benefits reported by EV owners.
Among all Canadian drivers, including those who don’t own an EV, 49% said there was “some likelihood” of their buying a new plug-in electric vehicle within the next year, though that includes plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) that revert to gas-electric operation when their stored charge runs out.
Charging an EV remains an issue, though. The survey found that 35% of EV owners said they were “not at all satisfied” with the number of public charging stations available. That rose to 68% among EV owners in Atlantic Canada. Unsurprisingly, those who live in multi-unit dwellings – such as apartments or condos – charge their vehicles at public chargers twice as often as those in single-family dwellings, who charge at home 85% to 90% of the time.
The survey found that plug-in owners spend a lot of time behind the wheel. PHEV drivers tend to drive about 10% more than the national average — and those with battery-only EVs drive about 24% more than PHEV drivers do. And while about 1 in 10 Canadian EV owners report a “serious problem” with lower range in extremely cold weather, EV drivers are 43% more likely than PHEV drivers to take their vehicles on trips of 200 km or more from home.
The separate survey from B.C. had some differences from the national report. Eight out of 10 EV owners in that province plan to buy another one, with 97% reporting lower “fuel” costs and 90% lower maintenance costs than the gas-powered vehicles they previously owned.
For charging, 7 out of 10 EV owners said they are less than satisfied with the number of public chargers available; while 83% have a home charger and most of their travel was within 100 kilometres of their home. In winter, 60% of EV drivers in B.C. prefer to drive their gasoline vehicle on long trips in extremely cold weather; and 60% experienced lower battery range at such temperatures.
The survey was done before the federal government announced it has “paused” its $5,000 rebate for qualifying electrified vehicles. British Columbia’s rebates are still available, but Quebec, which had already announced it was reducing the amount of its rebates and that it would phase out its rebates entirely by 2027, has also paused its program for a month, starting February 1, 2025.
In response to the federal rebate pause, three groups – the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA), the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association, and the Global Automakers of Canada – have issued a formal request to the Canadian government to end its planned mandate for zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) sales. The mandates, announced in 2023, require a sales target of 20% ZEVs in 2026, gradually increasing to 60% by 2030, and to 100% by 2035 and beyond.
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