2021 will go down as the year that electric vehicles became real.
Yes, we've had the Chevy Bolt and the Nissan Leaf, but up until this year, for many people it was all about Tesla.
And I saw a ton of Teslas on the road in Southern California, where Hyundai brought me to drive their new electric Ionic 5, and also some Mustang Mach Es from Ford.
A year ago, the Mustang Mach E was the leading edge of the non-Tesla EV assault. Now, according to Sam Abuelsamid of Guidehouse Insights, there are 20 electric vehicles being sold.
That will double in the coming year.
And just to underscore that, Motor Trends Truck of the Year and Car of the Year both come from EV startups, Rivian and Lucid. Both the Rivian R1T and Lucid Air are also finalists for North American Car and Truck of the Year — an award that will be presented on early January.
I'm on the jury and the board of directors for that award, and we had a bumper crop of electric vehicles to judge this year. I predicted that my 2025, more than half of our crop of semi-finalists would be electric. Looking at product plans, that may happen even sooner.
So, let's take a look at the non-Tesla EVs that are out there, and what's coming soon, with some specific impressions from those that I've driven.
HYUNDAI IONIC 5: We'll start with this because I just finished driving it. Spacious, nice interior, nice technology. Styling is perhaps a bit too dramatic for my taste. I loved the handling on windy mountain roads.
FORD MUSTANG MACH E: Ford went bold, adding both crossover functionality and electric vehicle driving performance to a model that already has a cache. Mustang purists were offended, but the market doesn't mind. Ford's trying to figure out how to make more of them. It's fun to drive, with a cool, but not too spacey interior.
LUCID AIR: I drove this vehicle for an hour and loved it. It has a true luxury interior, neat innovations — like a totally glass roof — and 1000 horsepower. It also has a new system that allows for extra range and fast charging. Ignore the 160k price tag for the first model. They will have models in the 70 thousand range, allowing a real alternative to other luxury brands.
RIVIAN R1T: The first EV in the most important part of the market — pickup trucks. It's impressive in every way, considering that it's a startup company. Nice extras for storage, and a very unique styling.
GMC HUMMER PICKUP: GM took everything you can do with EVs and put it in one package as a demonstration of what can be done. It's awesome and expensive. But, this is not meant to be a mass market vehicle. It's mean to have people look at it and realize that--after problems like recharging and expense are worked out — EVs can be an improvement over what they are driving now.
VW ID 4: Others have raved, I think it gets lost in the shuffle, maybe what Ford would have done if they'd decided to do an electric Escape instead of an electric Mustang. I was put off by the forgettable interior and some confusing controls. But, don't underestimate Volkswagen, because they are all in on EVs, and will improve.
CADILLAC LYRIQ: I've seen it, not driven it, and it's absolutely beautiful, with lots of cool new lighting cues and other extras that make you feel it's something special.
FORD F-150 LIGHTING: This is the big test of EV acceptance. Ford is betting a lot that pickup customers will find that electrification can help in many ways. Offboard power, lockable storage and a lot of power to move the vehicle are all things that the current F-150 doesn't have. For anybody who doesn't need to take long trips in a truck, this will be an improvement.
CHEVY SILVERADO EV: We'll see this at CES. GM promises it will have extras to compete with the F-150 Lighting. It will be fun to see the EV pickup competition grow, as an electric Ram is also coming soon.
FORD E-TRANSIT/GM BRIGHTDROP: Vans will be big early in the EV experience, as companies get extra credit for being green, and range is not an issue if you have repeatable routes.
CHEVY BOLT/BOLT EUV: Solid, nice vehicles, but they will quickly be dated by what's coming from GM. And I can't consider the Bolt EUV a crossover without all-wheel-drive. It's a hatchback in my book.
NISSAN LEAF: I haven't driven the newer model. But it feels like the days are numbered as Nissan has an all new EV, the Ariya coming out in 2022.
These are but a few impressions. It will be very interesting to see what the New Year holds as some of these very important vehicles hit the market in very big numbers....and it will be interesting to see how traditional carmakers do in their competition with not just Tesla, but a number of other EV startups.
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