"Automotive inSIGHTS 2/2010" (PDF, 3784 KB - Roland Berger

A LOOK AROUND THE WORLD
What then would the applications for EVs be? They should
be limited to short-range transportation in urban areas,
as priority is given to safety. Applications may also expand
to include commercial uses such as pickup and delivery
vehicles used on a particular route, private uses like car
sharing and so on.
The potential of expansion largely depends on consumers'
first impressions of EV. One user took a 20-minute drive
through his neighborhood via EV car sharing (Fig. 2). His
conclusion was: "will not use anymore since it offers no
reliability". This was based on his report that: "Driving
range was halved when the heater was turned on. Cannot
trust it any more"; "Driving range was given as 90 km with
a 95% charge, although it should be 160 km at 100%";
"The silence felt so weird. Might get used to it, but still
feel anxious as it is too quiet"; "It took 10 minutes to
fit the charging socket. Cannot do this every day".
In contrast, another user enjoyed a long-distance drive
to the suburbs with a rental car. His impression after
the drive was that "the EV is practical enough". He understood
through actual experience that the driving range –
the biggest initial concern – was not such a problem.
1) The number of pilot cities has already reached 25 and will increase steadily
Everything takes some getting used to. Especially for cars:
people have a certain image from conventional engine
cars, and a new vehicle like an EV might at first create an
uncomfortable impression. But this discomfort does not
last long. Acceptance of EVs depends heavily on whether
drivers can be given enough time behind the wheel to get
used to the new sensation.
Popularizing EVs in Japan depends on the amount of effort
and information on the part of the provider. Careful prepa-
ration, such as developing a vehicle that will be accepted
by consumers who put a premium on security and safety,
will be necessary, as will offering test drives so that
consumers can experience the car's practicality for
themselves.
Meanwhile, EV popularization in China is due largely to
government policy (Fig. 3). Full-fledged popularization of
private cars still has a ways to go, given that the largescale
EV project "10 cities, 1,000 vehicles" 1) still focuses on
public transportation such as buses and taxis. However,
the growth of the Chinese automobile market pushed it
almost to number one in just 10 years. There is still plenty
of room for EVs on the market, and they are likely to gain
popularity rapidly, if the right product is launched.
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