Eighteen months ago, I bought an Electric Vehicle ('EV'). I knew I was still in early adopter territory (not my natural habitat), but working in the industry I felt confident in the decision.

My extended family was highly amused. How would I charge it? When? What if I needed to go further than the range? Every myth you’ve heard was presented as evidence of my probable misstep.

Fast forward to today. Nine months after the US-Iran conflict kicked off we’ve witnessed a structural shift in the Australian market. EVs made up almost 25% of sales in August and again in September. This isn’t a knee-jerk reaction to fuel prices. We’ve crossed the chasm. EVs are mainstream.

I’d sensed it even before the numbers landed. Want to know how? After a few cautious questions (how would it fit into our life? are the savings worth it?), one family member recently bought an EV (and is loving it). More about my family in a moment. 

So surely, I thought, the everyday Aussie is now more likely to consider an EV.  As always, I went to the data and asked a representative sample of Australians.

I expected a jump. Instead, I got déjà vu. In May, just over a quarter of Australians (28%) said they were more likely than three months ago to consider an EV for their next car, while almost as many (27%) were less likely. The biggest group, 44%, felt about the same. Five months later, with EVs at record sales, the numbers hadn’t moved*.

Why?

The Electric Vehicle Council reports there are now more than 500,000 EVs on Australian roads. That sounds huge, until you remember there are around 20 million passenger and light commercial vehicles registered, with an average age of 11–12 years. Most drivers last bought a car when EVs were a niche curiosity or won’t be back in market for many years. They aren’t “listening”.

Back to my family - another convert proves the point. A few weeks after the first, one of the biggest naysayers bought an EV too. They hadn’t been researching EVs or following the debate. They went to look at their favourite brand, saw one they liked, weighed up the government incentives, and bought it.

Like the 44% above, they weren’t listening to the market until the moment they were in it.

So what does this mean?

• Future buyers aren’t listening until they’re back in market. When they arrive, their beliefs are often years out of date.
• Mainstream sales don’t mean mainstream understanding. Reaching early majority isn’t the time to stop educating.
• If a buyer says “petrol”, don’t assume they won’t look at an EV.  Ensure your value proposition holds up on all models, regardless of fuel type.
• The window is short, so make it count. Accessible and easy-to-digest information on powertrain, backed by great conversations on the dealership floor, will do the heavy lifting for a long time to come.

Do you know what your future buyers believe when they walk through the door?  If you’d like to see what’s holding buyers back, or test whether your information is landing, let’s talk.

*Source: PureProfile Omnibus May 2026 (n=1,001) and October 2026 (n=1,002)