Electrical cars are priced comparably to ICE cars (after subsidies). The main reason electrical cars are selling so good is not the price of the car, but rather all the other subsidies. Free pass through toll roads (which can be pretty expensive), free parking, free ferries and almost free fuel. Most car trips are short enough that range isn’t a problem.
ICE cars in Norway enjoy a 25% sales tax and quite a lot of taxes for the co2 emisions, engine size etc. Most low end cars end up just short of 100% in taxes, high end cars up to 200%, and luxury cars are a lot more.
Electric cars would not sell anywhere near as good if they weren't exempt from taxes and cost twice as much as they do now.
> and quite a lot of taxes for the co2 emisions, engine size etc
In other words, when you take away the implicit subsidies for the unpriced carbon, electric cars become cost-competitive?
(In Norway, the electric grid is primarily renewable/hydro based[1]... yes, I realize this argument is different for countries with different electrical makeups)
Electrical cars are cheap in Norway compared to other cars, especially compared to the same situation in other countries.
It's not like they're cheap, but the fees are insanely high for ICE cars in Norway.
Example:
A BMW M550i is from what I can see $73,400 in the US and $135,300 in Norway. That's 82 percent more. The difference is way smaller for electric cars.
Bingo. I looked up the vehicle example and the first search result talks about it hitting 60mph in 4 seconds. That kind of car is hit heavily by Norwegian taxes, as they are in part based on engine displacement.
Pretty much. Most of that was introduced back when Think was the height of EV, and very few were interested.
Come Tesla, and suddenly all the rich people in Oslo wanted one so they could bypass the commuters by driving in the bus lanes.
The rest of the nation is still very much an ICE nation. When you have to drive a half hour or more to do certain types of shopping when you live outside the cities, they are pretty much required.
In spring I drove 500 km in Norway between Oslo and Bergen in a leased eGolf from 2016. The whole trip took 9 hours versus 7.5 hours in an ICE car. The extra time is just time at quick charging stations that I had to use 4 times. The trip is over mountains with over 1Km up and that kills the battery much quicker than the promised 200km of range.
On a more flatter terrain around Oslo the car could go around 150km. This is more than enough for any kind of shopping. The newer eGolf almost doubles the range making it absolutely non-issue if one gets car today.
The real reason is why electrical car has not been popular with less wealthy people is that cars in Norway are heavily taxed making one a heavy investment that one sticks to and people here are rather conservative. But attitude is changing.
