WASHINGTON, D.C. — Watching the Super Bowl this weekend may introduce many viewers to some of the benefits of electric vehicles. Audi, Porsche and Ford announced plans to show new commercials for electric vehicles during the big broadcast. General Motors plans to show a teaser for its upcoming GMC Hummer, joining Ford, Tesla and Rivian in announcing plans to build an all-electric pickup truck. If these companies successfully follow through on those promises, the effort could go a long way to showing consumers that electric vehicles aren’t just better for public health and saving money on fuel, but are also fast, powerful, and capable.
Shannon Baker-Branstetter, Consumer Reports’ Manager for Cars & Energy Policy, says: “A Super Bowl ad is a good start. The auto industry spends millions of dollars every day advertising gasoline-powered vehicles, so it’ll take serious efforts to make great electric vehicles and then introduce and market them to the general public.”
CR also urges auto companies to address the risks of putting especially-large vehicles on roads shared by all types of road-users.
Ethan Douglas, a Senior Policy Analyst at Consumer Reports, says: “If GM is going to revive the Hummer, it’s great for it to be a zero-emission vehicle instead of a gas-guzzler. But it also needs to be safe. The final design shouldn’t pose a disproportionate threat to other road users, especially pedestrians, and should include advanced safety features as standard.”
75% of prospective car buyers say automakers should provide more kinds of electric vehicles, including SUVs, pickup trucks and minivans.
Electric vehicles offer significantly lower operating and fueling costs compared to traditional, gas-powered cars. They also produce less greenhouse gas emissions than gas-powered vehicles in every state in the country, according to a recent analysis by Consumer Reports.