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Tuesday, March 19, 2024
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EVs Are On The Rise

3 min read
A survey has shown that more than half of Singaporean consumers are looking at electric vehicles as their next car purchase. And that’s also where the global car consumer market is trending towards. Not surprisingly, the driving force behind this decision is concern for the global environment.

Singapore’s determination to phase out Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicles by 2040 has shifted the attention of local consumers to vehicles running on cleaner energy. And the electric vehicle (EV) has become the poster child for this movement in Singapore and across the world.

Integrated electric car drive module with automatic transmission.
Part of the internal combustion engine.

The COVID-19 pandemic has also helped raise awareness of environmental issues, enlightening consumers on the importance of reducing carbon emissions and becoming more environmentally conscious. The electrification of transport is seen as the future of the motoring industry in response to climate change.

Major car manufacturers such as Hyundai, BMW and Toyota are increasingly electrifying their lineup of new car models. Apart from the clear environmental advantage, they are quiet and smooth. And car manufacturers have been busy making them fun and responsive to drive as well. EVs are relatively easy to maintain as they have few mechanical components, which means less wear and tear to worry about.

Buying an EV in Singapore is not exactly cheap — they do command a premium over their ICE (Internal combustion engines) counterparts. However, the local EV population more than doubled from 1,397 vehicles in end-2020 to 3,713 vehicles in end-2021, a clear sign that Singaporeans are warming up to EVs

Further supporting this is that, within two months of Tesla entering the local car market in July 2021, one of its products rose to become the bestselling EV model, while the brand became the sixth bestselling car brand in Singapore. Though it is by no means affordable, Tesla’s Model 3 is selling like hot cakes among Singaporeans. By the end of September 2021, there were officially 558 Tesla cars plying our roads. Tesla owners also have access to two exclusive Supercharger stations. Located at Orchard Central and Millenia Walk respectively, the Tesla V3 Supercharger takes only about 15 minutes for a full charge.

However, there are definitely drivers who are hesitant about going electric; they usually point to the current lack of charging points for their reservation. Working to improve the EV infrastructure certainly takes time, but the push is clear and consumers can expect to enjoy easier access to charging stations as work has started on getting up to 60,000 EV points deployed around the island by 2030. There are also other factors being rolled out to convince more people to take to EVs: attractive tax incentives, reliable post-purchase support, and quality after-sales service will go some way towards ensuring the viability of driving and owning an EV.

A row of EV charging points at a charging station

The EV charge has started, and it will be interesting to see how it transforms the motoring landscape in years to come.

CHARGE AT AA CENTRE 
AA Singapore Members can now charge their EV at the AA Centre. Simply download PlugIt — available on both Android and iOS formats — on your mobile phone, and sign up for an account to start and stop charging!