Suggested Citation:
Cahill, Eric, Jamie Davies, Thomas S. Turrentine, Daniel Sperling (2014) Zero-emission Vehicles and Retail Innovation in the U.S. Automotive Sector: The Consumer Purchase Experience and Dealer Engagement. Institute of Transportation Studies, University of California, Davis, Research Report UCD-ITS-RR-14-45

Innovative new products like plug-in electric vehicles may need new approaches to market and sell them. We conducted 43 interviews with automakers and dealers selling plug-in vehicles in California’s major metro markets and analyzed data on customer satisfaction with new car dealers and Tesla retail stores. Our initial findings revealed:

• Plug-in vehicle buyers rated the dealer purchase experience much lower than conventional vehicle buyers while Tesla earned industry-high scores;
• Plug-in vehicles returned higher dealer gross profits but may insufficiently compensate for greater demands, including the provision of support services beyond traditional offerings;
• Public incentives could better align with established dealer practices and business drivers to improve program effectiveness.

We consider how pre-existing retail configurations and arms-length manufacturer-dealer relations in the traditional franchised model could both enable and hinder retail innovations for PEVs. The paper considers implications and opportunities for policy.

Presented at Transportation Research Board 94^th Annual Meeting, Washington, DC, January 11-15, 2015