Home charging remains an EV draw, but rising electricity prices frustrate customers
Home charging — a selling point for electric vehicles — is increasingly frustrating consumers because of rising electricity prices and slower-than-expected charging speed, according to J.D. Power.
Charging at home continues to be important for EV owners, especially as federally funded public charging infrastructure becomes uncertain, according to the J.D. Power 2025 U.S. Electric Vehicle Experience Home Charging Study released March 25.
More than 80 percent of regular charging happens at home, according to J.D. Power.
Overall satisfaction with home charging is still high, but frustrations with charging equipment is increasing. Some EV owners are rejecting mounted Level 2 chargers, opting for slow-charging Level 1 systems that connect to a standard 120-volt electrical outlet, the firm said.
Sign up for the weekly Automotive News Mobility Report newsletter for the latest developments at the intersection of transportation and technology.
Level 2 charger usage is highest among owners of 2022 model-year vehicles, while usage of Level 1 chargers is increasing among owners of 2023 and newer model-year EVs.
'We see a pretty good percentage of people who have determined that a Level 1 charger just simply meets their needs. They may not be driving all that much and they don't need the extra power of the Level 2 charger,' Brent Gruber, executive director of the EV practice at J.D. Power, told Automotive News.
Other EV owners are likely forgoing Level 2 chargers as many incentives from utilities and automakers expire.
One utility had a program that allowed customers to spread the cost of charger installation over several payments, rather than paying at once, Gruber said. That program, along with many others, has ended, he said.
A Level 2 charger costs $300 to $600 depending on the manufacturer and retailer, plus installation.
Some discounts are still available, but consumers often don't know where to find them, Gruber said. Eaton has a rebate finder on its website to set expectations before they install a charger.
If home charging doesn't meet consumers' cost, safety and reliability standards, 'they tend to have a bad experience, and then it just hurts the market,' said Dan Carnovale, director of Eaton Experience Centers.
Overall, EV owner satisfaction with Level 2 permanently mounted chargers fell 11 points from a year earlier to 714 on a 1,000-point scale. Satisfaction with Level 1 chargers was flat at 581, J.D. Power said.
Customers tend to prefer Level 2 chargers over Level 1 because they have more features, Gruber said. They connect to Wi-Fi, allow customers to manage their charging to optimize cost, and charge EVs much faster than Level 1 plugs.
Charging speed 'increases satisfaction dramatically,' Gruber said. When home charging is slower than expected, satisfaction declines 141 points on average.
J.D. Power compiled the home charging study in collaboration with PlugShare, an EV driver app maker and research firm. The study consisted of 10,472 EV and plug-in hybrid vehicle owners. It was fielded from November 2024 to January 2025 and measured satisfaction with the retail price of charging equipment, cord length, size of charger, ease of winding/storing cable, cost of charging, charging speed, ease of use and reliability.
Cost savings is another major driver of satisfaction. EV owners typically save by charging at home rather than filling at a gas station, Gruber said. The average cost per-kilowatt-hour at a public EV charger was $0.342 on April 2, according to AAA. The average price of gasoline was $3.238 per gallon, AAA said.
At about 4 miles per kWh, it costs roughly $8.55 for an EV to travel 100 miles. That compares with $12.95 for a car that averages 25 mpg.
Home charging is usually a better deal for EV owners than public chargers, but the average cost to charge EVs at home has increased. EV owners said they spent $58 on electricity to power their EVs in March, up $2 from a year earlier.
Frustration with charging cost 'may represent post-pandemic consumer weariness with pricing, along with the uncertainty of potential changes to federal EV support and energy regulation,' J.D. Power said in a statement.
Electricity cost varies across the country. At more than $75 per month, charging an EV was the most expensive in New England and California, Gruber said.
Home charging is one of the 'key reasons why people buy electric vehicles in the first place — that cost savings, the ability to take advantage of charging at home. That's part of the value proposition,' he said.
When electricity prices rise, 'the value proposition decreases,' Gruber said. 'It's a critical part of the ownership experience.'
Have an opinion about this story? Tell us about it and we may publish it in print. Click here to submit a letter to the editor.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
44 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Lotus Emira update promises ride and handling boost
The Lotus Emira has been updated with a series of refinements that promise to bring both a more engaging drive and greater levels of comfort. The Emira V6 SE (priced from £96,500) gets retuned dampers and new alignment settings that are said to improve both its ride and handling. Its manual gearbox also gets new mounts that are intended to improve the precision of gearchanges. Autocar previously found it prone to hesitation when slotting the gearlever into higher ratios when rushing a shift. Meanwhile, the Mercedes-AMG-powered four-cylinder Emira Turbo (from £79,500) gets a reworked dual-clutch automatic gearbox that is said to change gears more quickly and be smoother in its delivery. Both versions get updated cooling systems with rerouted lines, improving flow to the gearbox oil cooler and the main radiator. Lotus said this reduces temperatures and sheds weight, although it has yet to specify how much lighter the new Emira is. It has also recalibrated the engine thermostat so that it doesn't open until 75deg C – up 10deg C on its current specification – to improve performance in hotter climes. As well as technical updates, Lotus has introduced a new Racing Line trim for both the Turbo and V6 models. This adds a lower-body pinstripe in yellow, red or silver, mirror caps painted the same colour and monochrome exterior badging. It costs an extra £3000. ]]>
Forbes
2 hours ago
- Forbes
Lynk & Co 08 Test Driven: Can Super Hybrids Win In European Market?
The Lynk & Co is one of the first "Super Hybrids" to break out of China into the European market. There's a new automotive trend coming out of China. Although the country leads the world in pure battery electric vehicle (BEV) adoption, plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) have been growing fast too since the beginning of 2024. These are not the compromised cars of ten years ago, however. China is calling them 'super hybrids', and the first to arrive in Europe is the Lynk & Co 08. The big difference with super hybrids is the size of the battery they use, giving them a much larger electric range. The first plug-in hybrids offered under 30 miles of real electric range – only enough for short local urban trips. For all other kinds of journey, these cars are effectively just hybrids with pointlessly heavy batteries. There was also some evidence that they were being purchased as company cars for emissions-based tax credits and never plugged in and charged at all. For so little EV range, there wasn't much incentive to do so. Super hybrids are different. These have much larger batteries and can effectively function as battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) for all but the longest journeys. Their growing popularity in China is probably because the place is vast, and so are the cities. A super hybrid can be an EV in even a huge conurbation like Shanghai or Beijing. But China can be very rural outside its cities, and charging availability unreliable, so having fossil fuel as an alternative makes sense. Super hybrids have much larger batteries than previous PHEVs. In the Lynk & Co 08's case, a 39.6 kWh battery is included, delivering 120 miles of WLTP range. That's more than the first generation of Nissan Leaf BEV and not far off the second generation. The average European driver covers just 21 miles a day, so the 08's battery could last most of a week's regular journeys. Lynk & Co is part of Chinese giant Geely, alongside Volvo, Polestar, Zeekr and Lotus, so the technology was available in China first. The 08 was launched over there about two years ago, although the European version has some tweaks compared to the Chinese one, including stiffer suspension. 'An electric car doesn't work yet for some people,' says David Green, VP Strategy, Products and Offers, Lynk & Co. 'You don't buy the car for 98% of the year. You buy the car for 100% and in that case, people feel an EV won't work for them. Maybe the house in Italy doesn't have charging, or you're a businessperson that does long journeys, stops at night and can't charge there. These reasons create a space for a long-range PHEV. It's an electric car, but with no boundary. You can do the trip down to your small apartment in Italy that has no charger. The future will probably be fully electric. But there are some steps in the way.' The Lynk & Co 08 offers a premium interior experience. 'The 08 was launched in China almost two years ago,' says Nicolas Lopez Appelgren, CEO Europe, Lynk & Co. 'Ever since, we have gotten a lot of questions from media, but also from customers asking when the 08 would come to Europe. None of the other vehicles that we haven't brought to Europe has been asked for as much as the 08. Another reason is that electrification in Europe has clearly not gone as quickly as everybody thought five years ago. OEM after OEM has had to back down from their commitments of 100% electrified by a certain date, realizing it will take a longer time. This makes us believe that the 08 is the perfect segue into electrification. We believe very much that electrification will come, but the big question is exactly when. In the meantime, we believe that this is a very good product that will attract a lot of customers.' However, there's another reason for the increased interest in hybrids from Chinese companies. Chinese BEVs imported into Europe are subject to a tariff of up to 45.3%. However, Chinese PHEVs only receive a 10% tax, making the opportunities for profit far greater. The Lynk & Co 08 is a bit more than just a regular PHEV with a bigger battery, though. It has a new system from Horse Powertrain that has been specifically designed as a hybrid. 'It has one internal combustion engine (ICE) and two electric motors,' says Green. The ICE has a 1.5-liter capacity and is turbocharged. 'The first electric motor mainly charges up the battery. The second electric motor is mainly driving the wheels. You can blend and merge these. Then the combustion engine is mainly charging up the battery along with regeneration, but in certain circumstances, it can drive the wheels as well.' These motors work through a Dedicated Hybrid Transmission with three gears. Green claims the way the three different motors work together means the ICE can run at 43.3% maximum thermal efficiency, which means even when running on combustion the fuel usage should be frugal. On its own, the ICE delivers a decent if not incredible 51.4mpg (42.8mpg with US gallon). But most of the time you will have some battery available to increase that. The lynk & Co 08 drives like a BEV. During my test drive of the 08, it was a smooth experience like a BEV. This is also a quick car, capable of hitting 62mph in just 4.6 seconds. The three motors combine to deliver up to 585hp. It has 905Nm of torque, giving it the immediate response of a BEV and mostly drives like one. You also can barely tell if the ICE kicks in, it's so quiet – unlike the serial hybrid system of the Nissan e-POWER drivetrain. However, weighing in at 2,544kg, the 08 makes its mass known in corners, so this is more of an effortless highway and A-road cruiser than a sports SUV you can chuck around bends with abandon. You could, in theory, drive it entirely on electric power and never use any fossil fuel at all, although in that case you'd be better off with a BEV. However, while the Lynk & Co 08 does offer DC charging, this only operates at a maximum of 85kW, meaning it takes 28 minutes to go from 30% to 80% capacity. If you're taking a break somewhere with public charging that works out cheaper than fossil fuel, you might as well plug in. But the point is you don't have to worry about this, which appeals to some people. Lynk & Co's first two cars were smaller than the 08. The original 01 was another PHEV, but with a more conventional system than the 08. It has subsequently been updated to have the purpose-built Horse Powertrain system. The 02 (called the Z20 in China) is a BEV using the same architecture as the Zeekr X, Smart #1, and Volvo EX30. The 08 is a larger SUV aimed at a more grown-up family, with a comfortable amount of space in the rear for adult passengers and plenty of luggage space. There's 545 liters with the rear seats up, and 1,277 liters with them dropped forward. Talking about Lynk & Co's strategy going forward, Appelgren says: 'We believe very much in long-range plug-in hybrids. We have an electric vehicle (the 02). Let's see when we bring out the next one, but for now, we believe PHEVs will be very appealing. It is a step change from where PHEVs were a couple of years ago, which was literally a combustion engine that you coupled with an electric motor, a battery and a cord. The 08 car is developed from scratch to be a PHEV. It has a very useful range. Five to ten years ago, I thought PHEVs would be dead by now, because they were only a step into electrification. But the way they are now developing with the longer range built bespoke to be a PHEV with DC charging, they are more relevant than ever.' Unfortunately, there are no plans to bring the Lynk & Co 900 to Europe yet. That would be big departure for the 'funky and youthful' image Lynk & Co has cultivated in Europe so far. The 08 already signals a change towards a different customer. 'The D-segment SUV market is predominantly populated by premium brands,' says Appelgren. 'There are a few mainstream models in there, like the Kia Sorrento and Hyundai Santa Fe, but it's otherwise predominantly premium marques. Having an offer in that segment with the features the 08 has will help us to be established as a more premium brand in Europe. When we launched Lynk & Co with the 01, we were very heavily relying on subscription. The 08 will give us more maturity. It's a serious contender in a very serious and competitive segment.' Lynk & Co has another PHEV SUV available in China – the 900, which is strongly channeling Range Rover vibes, offering immense performance, comfort and luxury. I drove it in China and was very impressed by the power delivery, ride and interior quality. But we won't be seeing that in Europe anytime soon. 'The 900 is very nice, but it's 5.25m long,' says Appelgren. 'When cars get to five meters in Europe, it's difficult, and then adding 25 centimeters to that is very difficult. So there is no plan to bring that to Europe right now. We are a company that listens to customers, so we don't say no forever, but right now, I don't see that we can. If we would bring it, it would be an extreme niche product in Europe.' Lynk & Co reckons the 08 could be the product that breaks the brand into the mainstream. Lynk & Co is planning to enter the UK market, too. However, unlike other Geely brands it has no right-hand drive models yet. So the timeframe is not set, and this expansion will depend on whether the 08 fulfils its expectations. Priced at EUR 52,995 ($60,000) for the Core version and EUR 56,995 ($65,000) for the More version I drove, it's very reasonable for the performance, economy and equipment level on offer. 'The Lynk & Co 08 has a big chance to be our real breakthrough,' says Appelgren. 'We have good brand awareness in several markets, but with this product we will make a real difference. A lot of people will learn about the brand through the 08. The retail partners we have across Europe are thrilled about it and have high expectations on sales volumes. They believe that this will attract people that weren't acquainted with us before. The aim is for 6,000 sales in Europe in 2025, and next year, for now, we have 12,000 in the plan. Retailers think we might sell more. Supply won't be an issue. In China, they sell 10,000 of these a month.' There were over 79,000 Lynk & Co 08 cars sold in China in 2024. 'This will be the car that will put us clearly on the map.'
Motor 1
3 hours ago
- Motor 1
The Mustang's New Appearance Pack Is a 1980s Fever Dream
Ford has found inspiration in its past for a new appearance package that launches with the 2026 Mustang . It's called the FX Pack, and it adds a handful of retro-inspired styling cues straight out of the 1980s to the seventh-generation Mustang. The FX combines Adriatic Blue Metallic, a new color inspired by the teal available on the third-generation Mustang, and white accents, including the wheels. There are two new rim designs, both finished in Oxford White. Photo by: Ford Photo by: Ford The pack's standard wheel is a new version of the car's 19-inch, five-spoke option, which was already available for 2025. The other wheel is offered with the Performance Pack and has a retro design that would look perfect on an original Fox Body . The wheels have white center caps that feature a new FX-specific font inspired by the wordmark found on the 1987-1993 Mustangs. White accents also wrap around the 5.0-liter and GT badges, while Ford puts an all-white pony in the center of the glass-black grille. Performance Pack cars will also have Oxford White Nostrils, while non-Performance Mustangs will feature Dark Carbonized Gray examples. FX Mustangs will also come with white taillights that look striking against the new blue color. Photo by: Ford Inside, Ford continues the 80s vibe with unique perforated leather inserts, incorporating black and white elements that mimic the plaid seats found in Mustangs from that era, playing a great trick on the eyes. Best of all, the inserts are available on the standard buckets and the optional Recaro seats. Ford uses City Silver and Adriatic Blue stitching throughout the cabin, including the doors, dash, seats, and steering wheel. There's even a Mustang GT badge on the dash in the FX-specific font. Photo by: Ford Photo by: Ford Also new for the upcoming model year are new seatbelt color options: International Orange, Prime Blue, and Black with a red stripe. They're available across the Mustang lineup, along with the Adriatic Blue Metallic and Orange Fury Metallic Tricoat, which was last available for 2019. The white taillights will be available in the Ford Performance Parts catalog, allowing any seventh-gen Mustang owner to add them to their car. Customers will be able to get the FX Package on the GT Premium trim with or without the Performance Package in any body style, with either transmission option. The order books for the 2026 Mustang will open later this month. Check Out More Mustang News Here: Next-Gen Shelby GT500 Looks Menacing in New Spy Shots The Ford Mustang GTD Just Broke Its Own Nürburgring Record (Update) Get the best news, reviews, columns, and more delivered straight to your inbox, daily. back Sign up For more information, read our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use . Source: Ford Share this Story Facebook X LinkedIn Flipboard Reddit WhatsApp E-Mail Got a tip for us? Email: tips@ Join the conversation ( )
