Toyota RAV4 EV: Will anyone buy it?

[Teh One Who Knocks]

Does it make sense to pay $50,000 for the electric one?
By Jonathan Welsh - Market Watch


http://i.imgur.com/BZC9P.jpg

For anyone arguing recently that electric cars don’t stand a chance in the U.S. mass market, I would have offered one end-all example: the battery-powered Ford Focus at $40,000.

Now Toyota Motor Corp. offers even stronger ammunition in the form of a pricey electric SUV.

The car maker unveiled its RAV4 EV at the 26th annual Electric Vehicle Symposium in Los Angeles. It has the same unimpressive 100-mile range and roughly six-hour charging time of other new electric vehicles.

It can accelerate from zero to 60 mph in seven seconds and has a top speed of 100 mph. But the number likely to matter most is its nearly $50,000 sticker price ($49,800 to be exact).

Toyota said it expects sales of about 2,600 electric RAV4s in the next three years. The company said it will sell the vehicles initially in the Sacramento, San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, Orange County and San Diego markets in California. The car has a battery warranty of eight years or 100,000 miles.

While the sales forecast seems modest, I doubt Toyota will sell even that many—not to retail consumers anyway.

Perhaps I’m missing some vital piece of information, but I can’t imagine more than a handful of people willing to spend twice the cost of a gasoline-powered RAV4 to have an electric version. It doesn’t make sense.

Electric motors aren’t mysterious new technology and aren’t even especially sophisticated.

Sure, lithium ion batteries are expensive, but prices are falling and, well, I just don’t see where the expense lies. Years of research and development often go into bringing a new vehicle to market. But the RAV is an existing model and the electric bits largely needed only to be sourced, not invented.

Toyota said it expects demand for the electric RAV to come from technology fans like those who bought the first-generation Prius hybrid cars.

But for some would-be electric-car drivers the new vehicle may be a disappointment. It is for me. I have wanted an electric car ever since I road-tested one a dozen years ago.

But when the price rises to $50,000 I can’t help thinking about other, wiser ways to spend the money.

[Muddy]

50 G's.. wow.

[Teh One Who Knocks]

Yeah, that's insane....your ROI would suck on that thing

[Muddy]

That's an expensive golf cart..

[Godfather]

You just need Larry David to drive it on Curb and a few celebs on TMZ and E!, and it'll sell. I'm surprised Toyota would expect to sell such a ridiculously small number and still produce it :-k

The price is peanuts. If $50k was too high, then BMW, Mercedes, Lexus, Audi ect ect wouldn't be around.

[Muddy]

How much do you make a year GF?

[Godfather]

Enough, but that's not relevant... I work in a neighborhood where BMW's are just a boring commuter car and it takes a pretty wild car to turn heads. Plenty of those people bought Prius'. People spend $80,000 on a car left right and center.

[Teh One Who Knocks]

You just need Larry David to drive it on Curb and a few celebs on TMZ and E!, and it'll sell. I'm surprised Toyota would expect to sell such a ridiculously small number and still produce it :-k

The price is peanuts. If $50k was too high, then BMW, Mercedes, Lexus, Audi ect ect wouldn't be around.

You're trying to compare a Toyota to a luxury brand car? :-s

[Muddy]

Enough, but that's not relevant... I work in a neighborhood where BMW's are just a boring commuter car and it takes a pretty wild car to turn heads. Plenty of those people bought Prius'. People spend $80,000 on a car left right and center.

No soup for you. [-(

[Godfather]

You're trying to compare a Toyota to a luxury brand car? :-s

Sure! You probably wouldn't get a Prius new for less than $30,000 walk-away. That ugly fucker sold over 200,000 last year. So I'm just thinking only 2600 of this car over 3 year sounds really pessimistic.

[Teh One Who Knocks]

Sure! You probably wouldn't get a Prius new for less than $30,000 walk-away. That ugly fucker sold over 200,000 last year. So I'm just thinking only 2600 of this car over 3 year sounds really pessimistic.

The only people buying a Prius are celebrities and hipsters. I don't know anyone that drives a BMW or a Mercedes that would even consider a Toyota, that's a common man's car to them.

[Godfather]

The only people buying a Prius are celebrities and hipsters. I don't know anyone that drives a BMW or a Mercedes that would even consider a Toyota, that's a common man's car to them.
2.5 Million sold already...

Celebrities and hipsters are a viable market if there are 200,000 of them who can afford it a year. That's twice as many as the Rav4 sold and it's got the same starting price.

[KevinD]

I make a fair amount of $$ a year, and I won't spend $50k on ANY vehicle, much less one I couldn't even drive to work everyday. These kind of vehicles do make a bit of sense for those who live and work close together, but not at the price points. I'm still trying to figure out how the Ford Focus EV is at $40k, and the author thinks that's a good deal?

[Acid Trip]

I make a fair amount of $$ a year, and I won't spend $50k on ANY vehicle, much less one I couldn't even drive to work everyday. These kind of vehicles do make a bit of sense for those who live and work close together, but not at the price points. I'm still trying to figure out how the Ford Focus EV is at $40k, and the author thinks that's a good deal?

My thoughts exactly. $40k is more than half the annual salary for a majority of Americans. Henry Ford would balk at current car prices.

[Godfather]

The average income of Hybrid owners is apparently $113k. And most hybrids are made by your standard car companies. People are plenty willing to buy 'down' a car to be seen in a hybrid. I can tell you I see that every day selling home and auto insurance in a wealthy area. Plenty of very wealthy people out there in Highlander Hybrids and Prius's with their second car being an X5 or Land Rover :lol: It's bizarre.

[Teh One Who Knocks]

Sure! You probably wouldn't get a Prius new for less than $30,000 walk-away. That ugly fucker sold over 200,000 last year. So I'm just thinking only 2600 of this car over 3 year sounds really pessimistic.

And they have every right to be pessimistic, did you look at the sales figures for the Chevy Volt electric car? GM thought they would sell 10K of those a year...they barely sold 6K last year, and that was with the car being heavily subsidized by the US Government. So why would a consumer want to spend twice as much for the electric version of the RAV4 versus the gasoline powered one? Like I said, your ROI would be shitty. The only people that would buy it are the ones who can afford to throw money down the toilet.

[KevinD]

Exactly Lance. I never understood the idea of going out to buy a new vehicle juts because it gets a bit better mpg. It just doesn't make financial sense. Now when it's time to get a new vehicle, by all means, get the most fuel efficient you can stomach. Just don't go buy one because you think you're saving money.

[KevinD]

The Volt, I actually followed closely on GM blogs. Before the takeover by the Feds, everyone at GM knew the Volt wasn't ready for production, didn't have enough range, etc. etc. The Fed owned GM mandated that the Volt be produced, ready or not, thus the problems.

[Godfather]

I dono... I'm just saying that rich people buy Prius' in droves for whatever reasons. And it wouldn't surprise me in the least if they wanted its big cousin the Rav4 EV. :lol: I guess it does compare a lot to the Volt though, which was a huge flop.

[Teh One Who Knocks]

Here's where the economics just don't work out...if the gas powered RAV4 is $25K and the electric is $50K, then you are paying an extra $25K for not having to buy gas. For me, I spend (roughly) $2400/year for gas for my truck. At that rate, it would take more than 10 years to have made the investment worth it, and by that time, the RAV4 would be worth shit.

It makes ZERO financial sense to buy one.

[Acid Trip]

I dono... I'm just saying that rich people buy Prius' in droves for whatever reasons. And it wouldn't surprise me in the least if they wanted its big cousin the Rav4 EV. :lol: I guess it does compare a lot to the Volt though, which was a huge flop.

With the 100 mile range and 6 hour charging time it's more akin to the Nissan Leaf.

[KevinD]

Don't forget the $$ it costs to recharge an EV. That is NOT free whether you do it at home or at a station. The maintenance costs on an EV could be lower though (no oil/filters/plugs) but I'm sure there are scheduled maintenance things on an EV.

GF, rich people do have the $$ to spend on an EV. However since "rich" folks make up a small percentage of the population, doee it make sense to market a car as "for the masses, for the environment" and then price it out of reach of those who might need it?

[Godfather]

With the 100 mile range and 6 hour charging time it's more akin to the Nissan Leaf.

I think that's the flop more than the price tag.

[Hal-9000]

With the 100 mile range and 6 hour charging time it's more akin to the Nissan Leaf.

forget the price, this is what really matters....


100 miles then you must stop and find a charging station? Good luck going on ANY holiday anywhere :lol:

[Godfather]

Just get the optional 12v charger in the car... plug that fucker in to itself. Problem solved

[minz]

I have to agree with GF on this one, price is not so much an issue in some area's but more a case of the must have latest gadget and that's the market they will be aiming for, where I live almost all the women have SUV's just to do the school run and a good 50% of the cars on the road are high end sports cars (there's a nice little McLaren running around here that I would love to get my hands on :lol:) so if this type of car went on sale here I would expect to see quite a few of them knocking around, so the price isn't really that big a deal, I guess it's like anything newish, those who can afford it will buy it whilst the rest of us mere mortals have to wait until the price comes down as it inevitably will to eventually.

[Godfather]

The more I think about it the less I feel it's like a Prius and the more I think my argument was wrong :lol: Pocket change for some or not, the range is just too fuggin' short....