Like most new technologies, electric vehicles (EVs) are improving at a rapid pace. In 2025, more models came to the U.S. market offering a variety of body styles and improved range. Sales were up through Q3 thanks to these improvements and pulled-forward demand due to federal incentives ending. Charging infrastructure also grew significantly with public charging ports up 22% through October of 2025 from the year before.
Yet, headlines, political speech and government policy ran the gamut in 2025.
Did these fluctuations truly make an impact on consumers?
Based on CDK’s latest research, the answer seems to be a solid yes.
In our 2025 EV Shopper Study, there were two clear consumer trends emerging in this polarized moment. EV owners aren’t turning back, and non-EV owners are far less likely to consider the technology compared to just a year before.
EV Owners Are Locked In
A CDK study earlier in 2025 showed EV owners expressing their love for the technology and overwhelmingly say they’re going to buy another EV in the future (82%).
In this new research, we found this sentiment to be true. Over half (52%) of the EV shoppers we surveyed said they’ll be bringing their new vehicle home to park alongside another EV they previously purchased.
Gas Buyers Put on the Brakes
Those who aren’t EV converts are far less likely to ever buy an EV compared to just a year ago. Just one in 10 (11%) gas car shoppers said they’d buy electric in the future, down from one in three (31%) last year. The small number who’d consider an EV don’t plan on buying soon either, with 47% saying they’d buy one in the next five to seven years and 23% saying it’d be a full decade before their next vehicle came with a plug.
In this new research of over 1,200 gas, hybrid and electric shoppers, those shopping for gas cars’ opinions around EVs soured the most.
Both gas and hybrid shoppers were less likely to believe EVs were “perfect” as a second car in the household. They were also less aware of the charging speeds, costs and locations near them. The number of gas shoppers interested in seeking out news about EVs also fell in half, from 43% to 21%.
Far fewer gas shoppers have a friend or family member who owns an EV. That number fell from 53% to 34%. This is a vital statistic as 88% of EV buyers say they’re influenced by friends and family, the highest we’ve recorded in four years of asking that question.
A Hybrid Transition
Some of the EV reluctance is balanced by the idea of a transitional technology in hybrids. More than one in three (35%) hybrid shoppers said they’d buy an EV in the future, three times the number of gas shoppers. And four out of five gas shoppers (82%) said they’d first buy a hybrid before transitioning to an EV. A large number of respondents told us they wanted to “get used to driving electric” in a hybrid.
Changing the Narrative
It’s likely that as the calendar flips to 2026 many EV indicators will trend down, from sales to infrastructure investment. But automakers are still brining new models to dealerships, and the volatile used market has shown EVs to be a tremendously affordable option when overall prices are high.
One truth that has shown through in all our research: The more people who get in an EV, the more they’ll keep buying. I’ve routinely called it a snowball effect. The snowball might slow down for a quarter or two, or longer, but it’ll be hard to stop.
The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the sponsor and do not reflect the views, opinions, or positions of J.D. Power.