Almost three-quarters of motorists (72%) would switch to an electric car that offered 250 miles of range from five minutes of charging, according to new research.
The findings, from Startline’s May Used Car Tracker, found that the ultra-fast charging technology – as recently revealed by manufacturer BYD – could be a critical part of mass adoption to EVs.
It also found that 36% of respondents said the five minute timing is almost as fast as refuelling with petrol and 34% that it means they won’t need a home charger.
But the Tracker did also reveal that 15% believe power from chargers this fast will be expensive, while 12% said that building a charging network of this speed would be difficult.
The Startline Used Car Tracker is compiled monthly for Startline Motor Finance by APD Global Research, including 308 consumers and 66 dealers at the last survey.
Paul Burgess, CEO at Startline Motor Finance, said:
“The promise of an electric car that can be powered with the convenience of a petrol equivalent clearly strikes a chord with many potential buyers, our research shows.
“Being able to pull up to a charger and add 250 miles of range in moments would remove the need for a home charger, especially important for people who don’t have the space to install their own, and promises to make the whole process of highway charging much simpler.”
Paul said: “We have, of course, yet to see BYD’s charging in action and it is comparatively rare to see chargers rated at over 300kW in the UK, never mind the 1,000kW that five-minute charging demands. Our most powerful public chargers offer less than half that capacity.
“Delivering this step change would require a massive investment in infrastructure and motorists are probably correct in assuming that this kind of power would be expensive to install and to access.”
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