There is no better indicator of the present state of change in the automotive industry than the new car inventory across our group. Go back 5 years ago or so, and pretty much our entire inventory was a traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle. We did have an electric or a hybrid vehicle from time to time, but in general our inventory was around 98% ICE vehicles.
Contrast that with the present: in a recent snapshot, our percentage of traditional ICE vehicles fell to 47%. Hybrids now account for 38% of our inventory, and cars that plug in account for 15%. That’s an amazing change in such a short period of time.
Granted, there are some mitigating factors. For example, we have many less Hondas on hand than we did historically. While Honda has an impressive average fuel economy across their line-up, they aren’t heavy into electric or hybrid cars just yet. And we have a lot of Volvos on hand, and every new car Volvo produces is a hybrid or an EV.
Yet to go from one or two percent to 53% is extraordinary, and it shows you everything you need to know about the future of automotive and electrification.