• Drivers in the US suffer from fears about the range of their electric vehicles and a patchy charging network.

• One solution could be longer-range electric vehicles that can be charged with a gasoline-powered generator.

• EREVs are still more environmentally friendly than vehicles with combustion engines.

America may be facing an electric car fatigue that the auto industry cannot afford.

According to a study published by McKinsey in June, almost half of electric vehicle owners in the US would probably switch back to a gasoline-powered vehicle. They cited range anxiety, an unreliable charging network and high operating costs as reasons, among others.

Other problems identified in the study include the inability to charge the vehicle at home and the impact on long-distance driving.

In the US, the transition from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles has been rocky. Sales have declined, but demand has not abated.

One possible solution is rapidly gaining traction in China, where electric vehicles dominate. However, it requires gasoline.

What are EREVs?

An extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) is powered solely by a battery, but the battery itself can be charged by a generator that requires gasoline.

With the generator, EREVs can double the range of their pure electric vehicle counterparts, even for large vehicles.

Last year, Stellantis NV announced the Ramcharger, an EREV truck that promises a range of 690 miles – more than twice that of the Tesla Cybertruck.

Of course, this gas-powered generator comes with some environmental penalties compared to a pure electric vehicle. While EREVs still emit pollutants, a 2020 study published in the Public Library of Science found that the overall environmental impact is lower than that of hybrid vehicles – powered by an internal combustion engine and an electric motor – and gas-powered vehicles.

The study also found that EREVs use about 15 percent less mineral resources than hybrid electric vehicles and about 35 percent less fossil energy than gasoline-powered vehicles.

According to a recent Bloomberg report, EREVs’ battery packs are smaller than those of traditional electric vehicles due to their design, reducing the overall cost by about $4,000. However, the battery pack is larger than that of hybrids, making EREVs more expensive than typical HEVs.

EREVs on the rise in China

EREVs have not yet caught on in the U.S., but are gaining ground in China, where electric vehicle makers are reporting record sales.

According to The Detroit News, citing the China Automobile Dealers Association, 116,000 EREVs were expected to be delivered wholesale in the country in 2024, up 113% from the previous year.

A report by Bloomberg New Energy Finance showed that EREV sales have more than doubled since last year and now account for 30% of plug-in hybrid sales in China.

American automakers seem to be taking note of this.

After a visit to China, Ford CEO Jim Farley raved about the potential of EREVs as an interim solution for customers at the Bernstein Annual Strategic Decisions Conference in May.

With EREVs, “you get an electric vehicle and you have 700 miles of range. You don’t have range concerns in the long run, you don’t have to rely on chargers, and these vehicles have half as many batteries,” he said.

However, the adoption of EREVs in the United States may continue to face obstacles from regulators, manufacturers and environmental advocates.

As the Bloomberg report notes, EREVs may not be classified as pure electric vehicles and therefore may be exempt from the $7,500 tax credit.

A GM spokesman also told the outlet that building EREVs is “complicated and expensive.”

And because they rely on gasoline, EREVs could be classified as hybrid vehicles, which some environmentalists say are not enough to drive the global trend toward zero-emission vehicles.

The Ramcharger is expected to be the second EREV sold in the U.S. The Chevrolet Volt, introduced in 2010, was the first EREV but was discontinued in 2019 after being impacted by low sales due to a shift in consumer preference toward larger vehicles.

Read the original article on Business Insider