Long-range EVs now cost less than the average new car in the U.S.

financialpost.com:

The automotive industry has entered a fiercely competitive phase in the electric vehicle transition, and it’s producing an intriguing result for U.S. car buyers: the first long-range EVs that are cheaper to buy than the average gas-powered car.

At least three manufacturers — Tesla, Hyundai-Kia and General Motors — now offer EVs with more than 300 miles (480 kilometres) of range for less than the cost of the average new vehicle sold in the U.S., according to an analysis by Bloomberg Green. The most affordable is Hyundai’s 2024 Ioniq 6, which comes with 361 miles of range and a price tag that’s 25 per cent below the national average of roughly US$47,000.

Over the past six months, competition between U.S. auto brands has taken on a Squid Game vibe, as pressure rises to make EVs affordable and attract a new wave of buyers. Customers have become more savvy about battery range, charging speeds and charger accessibility, and are rejecting vehicles that don’t justify the sticker price — something automakers have started to acknowledge.

The industry has begun “a challenging period, very chaotic, very Darwinian,” Carlos Tavares, chief executive of Stellantis NV, told investors at a Bernstein conference last week .

Stellantis, which has been slow to offer electric models in the U.S., will launch a US$25,000 electric Jeep “very soon” as part of a large-scale EV offensive, Tavares said. “Affordability is the key success factor right now. If you want the scale to materialize, you need to be selling BEVs to the middle classes.”

Tavares said the only winning strategy is to offer EVs at comparable upfront prices from the start, even if it requires sacrificing profit margins during the transition phase. He warned that car manufacturers