Actors Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet and Larsen Thompson are stranded on the side of a highway with a broken-down motorcycle in EV startup Lucid\u2019s 2025 \u201cDriven\u201d ad campaign.<\/p>\n
They sneak into a nearby warehouse and abscond with Lucid\u2019s Gravity SUV in the action movie-style commercial that highlights the vehicle\u2019s performance, technology, and range.<\/p>\n
\u201cHoly sh\u2014!,\u201d Thompson exclaims as Chalamet leads them on a high-speed chase, escaping into the desert.<\/p>\n
This type of messaging may become more common in a market that\u2019s at an inflection point. Many consumers who were motivated to adopt cutting-edge tech and ditch their gas-guzzling vehicles for environmental reasons have already gone electric. Now, the industry is tasked with attracting mainstream consumers who no longer have the benefit of tax credits to offset the higher up-front cost of electric models.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe power, the performance, the technology, the general desirability: These are the things that I think EV marketing should be talking about,\u201d Ed Kim, president and chief analyst at automotive marketing research firm AutoPacific, told us.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverybody\u2019s gotta get on board,\u201d he added. \u201cSo take the messages that are potentially politically polarizing out of the equation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tough sell<\/h2>\n
Domestic automakers are pumping the brakes on EV investments\u2014and hitting the gas harder. Ford, General Motors, and Jeep-maker Stellantis have incurred billions of dollars in writedowns after backtracking on electrification plans. On Thursday, Honda reported that it anticipates a $15.7 billion hit from realigning its EV strategy.<\/p>\n
These shifts are being driven by market conditions and federal regulatory changes that make electrification a more difficult proposition for buyers. The Trump administration has rolled back tailpipe and fuel efficiency standards, nixed EV tax credits of up to $7,500, and reversed Environmental Protection Agency findings that underpinned the federal government\u2019s climate policies. After those changes, EV sales fell nearly 50% from Q3 to Q4 2025, according to AutoPacific.<\/p>\n
The firm forecasts that EVs\u2019 market share will drop to 7% in 2026\u2014the first expected annual decline since 2011, shortly after the Nissan Leaf, the first mass-market EV in the US, went on sale.<\/p>\n
At the same time, dozens of electric models are on the market, including new entrants. No. 1 US automaker GM, for example, offers choices ranging from the ultra-luxurious (the Cadillac Celestiq starts at about $340,000) to the sub-$30,000.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor a long time, the automakers basically didn\u2019t really have to market and sell EVs, because people walked into the dealership or\u2026into one of their stores intending to buy regardless,\u201d Loren McDonald, CEO and chief analyst at Chargeonomics, told us, adding that those buyers were drawn to new and greener tech, and were willing to deal with reliability issues.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow we\u2019ve moved into people\u2026who may or may not necessarily be convinced to get an EV, so they have to be persuaded, educated, convinced, sold, nurtured, etc., to get over that hump,\u201d McDonald said. \u201cI don\u2019t think the automakers\u2014except for Rivian and Tesla and Lucid\u2014have really understood that. They\u2019ve basically marketed EVs the same way they\u2019ve marketed gas cars over the years.\u201d<\/p>\n
McDonald argued that, historically, automakers and dealers haven\u2019t done the best job of educating consumers about, say, how to charge an EV.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s almost like learning a new language,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd the auto industry has just not done a good job explaining it, marketing it, educating people about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
New customers<\/h2>\n
At the same time, a recent AutoPacific analysis identified a potential opportunity for the EV industry: growing interest from Republicans.<\/p>\n
The firm\u2019s latest Future Attribute Demand Study found that shoppers who intend to buy an EV as their next vehicle are now more likely to be Republican than Democrat (43% compared to 36%)\u2014a finding so surprising to analysts that they repeatedly reviewed the data to make sure it was correct.<\/p>\n
After digging into the data, analysts realized that this trend was largely due to one factor: Tesla and the brand\u2019s affiliation with right-wing politics through its co-founder and CEO, Elon Musk. This shows up as an outsize market trend because Tesla, despite losing market share, still makes up 44% of the US EV market.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile Tesla alienated many potential Democrat customers, the EV maker clearly gained Republican fans in 2025,\u201d per the report. \u201cIndeed, Tesla consideration among EV intenders in 2024 was virtually swapped, with 49% of Tesla considerers who intend to get an EV identifying as Democrats and just 28% identifying as Republicans.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The upshot is that GOP consumers could \u201cend up being a lifeline for EVs in the US market,\u201d Kim wrote.<\/p>\n
However, the analysis suggests that Republican consumers\u2019 feelings about EVs actually don\u2019t have much to do with politics. Among those who aren\u2019t interested in an EV, only 13% cited political beliefs as a reason. Instead, they\u2019re turned off by common bipartisan concerns, like cost and issues with charging and battery range.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor many consumers\u2014regardless of their politics\u2014an EV is simply what they want or need,\u201d Kim concluded. \u201cFor others\u2014again, regardless of their politics\u2014an EV isn\u2019t. Maybe now, it\u2019s really becoming as simple as that.\u201d<\/p>\n
And with upcoming EV launches like Slate Auto\u2019s affordable DIY truck and a new electric pickup from Ford, McDonald said that while politics may remain a factor in buying decisions, a variety of compelling products could ultimately be the key to winning over hesitant consumers.<\/p>\n
Changing message<\/h2>\n
Though AutoPacific didn\u2019t find much Republican interest in non-Tesla EVs, Kim told us there\u2019s an opportunity to educate consumers about the vast selection of electric models on the market\u2014but first, automakers and car dealers need to get \u201cbutts in seats.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBy and large, EVs are very, very nice to drive, and they have so many of the characteristics that Americans want out of a vehicle. Americans tend to like very powerful vehicles. Americans tend to like a lot of performance,\u201d Kim said. \u201cWell, EVs tend to have those in spades.\u201d<\/p>\n
A January report by the International Zero-Emission Vehicle Alliance argued that EV stakeholders need to go beyond highlighting environmental benefits and make a more compelling case for EVs\u2019 advantages over internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. The report pointed to cost savings, an enjoyable driving experience, and convenience as advantages to spotlight.<\/p>\n
Marc Winterhoff, Lucid\u2019s interim CEO, told InsideEVs that automakers industry-wide should focus on touting EVs\u2019 technological and performance benefits.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think what we need to do is better explain the superiority of that technology, versus what we have unfortunately done,\u201d he said. \u201cWe have said, \u2018EV is sustainable, and ICE is not,\u2019 but if you focus on the specs that you get, I think that\u2019s what we need to do as an EV industry to overcome the current \u2018winter\u2019 that we see.\u201d<\/p>\n
Targeted approach<\/h2>\n
McDonald argued that traditional automakers have wasted advertising dollars with mass-market campaigns like TV ads. They \u201chave to move to a much more database-driven, much more targeted approach.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to Brian Dangers, SVP, client partner at Kantar, that shift is starting to happen, with EV players developing more targeted ad campaigns.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re also seeing more hyper-targeting with social and digital activities, programmatic, etc.,\u201d he told us, \u201cbecause you have to hit the people where they\u2019re at, and they\u2019re a little harder to reach.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not enough for auto brands to simply offer an electric model\u2014they need to differentiate their product and message, Dangers said, citing the Lucid \u201cDriven\u201d campaign as a positive example. This could be trickier for non-luxury EVs, because the industry no longer has the benefit of tax credits to help make EVs more affordable.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we\u2019re going to continue to see is that evolution from, \u2018Hey, this is just an environmentally friendly, good thing to do for the planet,\u2019 toward \u2018This is something that\u2019s going to benefit you,\u2019\u201d Dangers said. \u201cIt\u2019s going to be luxurious. It\u2019s going to have great performance. It\u2019s going to be able to fit your needs.\u201d<\/p>\n
McDonald also believes the auto industry needs to change its messaging on EV costs, which has tended to focus on battery-powered models being cheaper over the long run, despite having higher up-front price tags.<\/p>\n
\u201cNobody said that the Apple iPhone was too expensive and it\u2019s gotta be the same price as the flip phone,\u201d McDonald said. \u201cWhy? Because it was a different product that was way better.\u201d<\/p>\n
While EV sales can benefit from increased affordability, \u201cwe\u2019ve been marketing them wrong,\u201d he added. \u201cWe should actually be saying, \u2018There\u2019s a reason EVs cost more. They\u2019re better!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n