Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Legislation and Policy, USA



Here's an idea: instead of getting buyers interested in buying EVs, why not get the sellers keenly interested in selling them. That's the tact that the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is taking with a new promotion called the "Connecticut Revolutionary Dealer Award." It's so simple, it's a wonder no one has proposed it before.

The DEEP, along with the Connecticut Automotive Retailers Association (CARA), is going to hand out two awards, one for the dealer who sells (or leases) the most plug-in vehicles and one for the dealer who sells/leases the most on a percentage-basis of the total sales. The two competitions started February 1 and run through the end of July, 2014.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk would certainly agree with the reasons for the campaign. Musk has said it's difficult for traditional dealers to sell EVs since they undermine traditional ICE vehicles (Tesla does not yet have any stores in Connecticut, but one is "coming soon" in Milford). The forces behind the Connecticut program know that changing dealer behavior is key. "Dealers are ... the first and most critical 'hands-on' point of contact with prospective new car purchasers, some of whom may not have heard about the newest and most exciting transportation technologies," CARA president Jim Fleming said in a prepared statement. Unlike some states, where the dealers are actively working against EV proponents like Tesla, it is interesting to see a state turn the typical EV incentive picture around.

In the announcement, Connecticut prides itself on the work it has done promoting EVs. The state set up an Electric Vehicles Infrastructure Council many years ago and it has now given over $175,000 to almost 50 towns, businesses, and schools to help them build 75 EV charging stations in the state, for example, and it has teamed up with seven other states to get 3.3 million EVs (including battery electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids and hydrogen cars) into service by 2025. What better way to do that than give the sellers a reason to move metal? Now that we know the competition is afoot, does anyone want to guess what numbers the winning dealerships will turn in?Continue reading Connecticut turns EV incentive plan on its head, gets dealers into the game

Connecticut turns EV incentive plan on its head, gets dealers into the game originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Tue, 11 Mar 2014 15:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.



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There's no question that hybrids get better mileage than equivalent non-hybrids, and without questions about whether plug-in power comes from coal plants. So maybe this great idea should be extended to hybrids.