Gas-Powered Cars Still the First Choice for Most Americans

Tax Credits Gone, Sales Collapsing

The electric vehicle boom in America is hitting a wall.

After years of record growth, EV sales are falling for the first time since 2019, and buyers are heading back to gas stations instead of charging stations.

The reasons stack up fast: Congress killed the $7,500 tax credit, automakers are canceling electric models, and the Trump administration just gutted the fuel economy rules that pushed carmakers toward EVs in the first place.

What looked like an unstoppable shift is now a full-speed reversal.

Gas Cars Are Back in Demand

A December 2025 study by consulting firm EY found that 50% of global car buyers now plan to purchase a gas-powered vehicle in the next two years, a 13-point jump from 2024.

In the Americas specifically, preference for internal combustion engines rose by 12 points.

Meanwhile, battery-electric vehicle preference dropped to just 14%, down 10 percentage points, and hybrid interest fell to 16%. The message from American buyers is clear: they want what they know.

Congress Killed the Tax Credit

Congressional Republicans eliminated the $7,500 federal EV tax credit on September 30, 2025, through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

The credits were originally set to last until 2032 under the Inflation Reduction Act, but the July budget terminated them seven years early. The legislation also ended the $4,000 credit for used EVs.

Without that subsidy, the average EV now costs about $14,000 more than a comparable gas car.

Buyers Rushed the Deadline

Consumers raced to buy electric vehicles before the September 30 cutoff, pushing Q3 2025 to record levels.

EV market share hit 10.5% in the third quarter, an all-time high, with 437,487 fully electric vehicles sold.

Tesla even posted the deadline on its homepage: “$7,500 Federal Tax Credit Ending. Limited Inventory — Take Delivery Now.”

Dealers offered an average of $9,800 in additional incentives to move inventory before the credits vanished.

Then Sales Collapsed

Once the tax break expired, EV demand crashed. Preliminary data shows 230,000 electric cars sold in Q4 2025, a 46% drop from Q3 and a 37% decline year-over-year.

Market share fell from 10.5% to 5.7%. Cox Automotive projects total 2025 EV sales will decline 2.1% to around 1.275 million units, marking the first year-over-year drop since 2019. The tax credit pulled demand forward, then left a crater behind.

Ford Killed the Lightning

Ford ended production of the F-150 Lightning in December 2025, killing its flagship electric truck after just three years.

The company announced it was “following the customer” in discontinuing the vehicle, which was well-received but never profitable.

Ford took a $19.5 billion charge on its EV assets and is shifting focus to hybrids and a future Lightning with a gas-powered range extender.

The company once planned 150,000 annual sales. Actual numbers never topped 40,000.

Charging Hassles Persist

Only about 61,000 public charging stations exist across the country, according to Harvard researchers.

AAA found that 56% of Americans cite the lack of convenient public charging as a top reason for avoiding EVs.

And reliability remains a problem. Only 34% of charging stations share real-time data with apps, so drivers often arrive to find broken chargers with no warning.

Gas stations still outnumber chargers by more than two to one.

Range Anxiety Wont Fade

Despite improving battery technology, 55% of Americans still fear running out of charge mid-trip. Advocates say this fear is outdated.

Nearly 70% of the combined length of the ten longest interstate highways is now within 10 miles of a fast charger. But as one clean transportation advocate put it, “range anxiety is stuck in people’s heads.”

Logic says the chargers are there. Psychology says drivers don’t trust them.

Battery Costs Scare Buyers

Battery repair costs top the list of EV concerns, cited by 62% of Americans in AAA surveys. Replacing a Tesla Model 3 battery runs about $13,000, more than 30% of the car’s starting price.

Some replacement batteries cost up to $20,000. Higher insurance premiums and uncertain resale values add to the anxiety.

For mainstream buyers weighing a 10-year ownership window, those numbers don’t add up.

Trump Gutted Fuel Standards

In December 2025, President Trump announced plans to slash fuel economy requirements from 50.4 mpg to just 34.5 mpg by 2031.

Congress had already zeroed out penalties for automakers who miss their targets through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, making existing standards essentially toothless.

Ford CEO Jim Farley praised the move for “aligning fuel economy standards with market realities. ” Without regulatory pressure, automakers have little reason to keep building EVs that lose money.

Other Automakers Are Bailing Too

Ford wasn’t alone. Acura discontinued its first-ever production EV, the ZDX, citing “market conditions.”

Nissan paused the Ariya for 2026 after mediocre sales and tariff pressures. Mercedes halted all US-bound EQE and EQS sedan and SUV production as of September.

Ram canceled its planned all-electric 1500 pickup entirely. The list of abandoned or delayed EVs keeps growing as automakers adjust to the new reality.

Hybrids Are the Sweet Spot

Hybrid sales jumped 36% in the second quarter of 2025, claiming 22% of all new light-duty vehicles sold. Toyota’s electrified vehicle sales grew 19% for the year, with hybrids making up nearly half of its total volume.

The average new hybrid now costs $33,255, with models like the Toyota Corolla Hybrid starting in the low $20,000s.

For buyers who want better mileage without charging stations, hybrids offer the best of both worlds, and that’s exactly where the market is heading.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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