[Isaac Zackary]

The question is if the EV is:

1. Just an enthusiast's vehicle. The kind of vehicle that doesn't offer anything appealing to the general public, and will always cost a bit more than the competition although it may offer less even in "important" categories. This is similar to the diesel car. Sure, some people love them. But the general public doesn't care for them (at least in the USA) mainly for the higher initial price tag.
2. A partial competition. The kind of vehicle that ends up gaining more popularity than an enthusiast's vehicle, but doesn't really compete with others. Kind of like hybrids in the USA. Some people buy them because they just feel better about their purchase, whereas most other people don't care.
3. A fad vehicle.The kind of car people would in many ways be better off buying the competition, but that popularity has made them indispensable. Kind of like the SUV. An economist can point out how they are more expensive and cause more problems than they solve, but people buy them anyway just because they are cool.
4. A segmented vehicle. Kind of like how gasoline vehicles are popular in the private sector and diesel vehicles in the commercial sector. Maybe the electric vehicle will be the next car, SUV, pickup, minivan, etc., but not the next semi, bus, dump truck, crane, etc.
5. A true competition for the rest. The kind of vehicle that makes more sense to consumers and has a price point competitive enough that the masses make the change.
6. A combination of any of the above.

And by EV I mean ones that run on lithium ion batteries. There are several kinds of batteries. Maybe lithium ion is as good as it gets. But will that be enough to turn people over?