Out of juice, out of patience

In business, innovation is often celebrated as the finish line. A new breakthrough, a technical leap, a category redefined. But sometimes, innovation is just the beginning. What follows is slower, messier, and far harder to scale.

Electric vehicles are one of the most transformative innovations of our time: fast, quiet, efficient, and increasingly affordable. Automakers have delivered on range, design, and performance. Yet, the future of mobility isn’t being held back by what’s under the hood, but by what happens after purchase.

Innovation alone is not enough.

The decision to go electric ties consumers into an ecosystem that extends far beyond the car itself, from charging infrastructure to energy platforms to data-sharing agreements. When those systems fail to deliver, whether through slow charging, unclear pricing, or clunky digital interfaces, adoption stalls, no matter how advanced the car itself may be. Confidence is the real currency.

New research from Simon-Kucher’s Global Automotive Study 2025¹ reveals that for 74% of EV considerers, charging remains a major hurdle. For at least one in three, that means concrete issues with speed and availability of public charging. Even in markets where EV sales are growing, these infrastructure pain points persist. While early adopters remain highly committed, with 96% saying they would purchase an EV again, their experiences highlight a warning: if charging is already a pain point for those willing to absorb it, it risks becoming a major barrier for broader growth and mainstream switching.

The top concerns are practical: stations that are occupied, slow, or simply unavailable. Technical failures and inconvenient locations add to the frustration, turning charging infrastructure, not battery range, into the most common dealbreaker. 

Among current EV owners, a dedicated home station is by far the most common and preferred charging point. Public charging stations, workplace chargers, highway stations, and gas stations all rank significantly lower, reflecting both the reliance on home infrastructure and poor perception around the availability of convenient public alternatives. This imbalance highlights how the lack of robust public infrastructure continues to constrain EV adoption beyond the early adopter segment.

Most European countries have invested in charging infrastructure ahead of battery electric vehicle adoption, leading to temporary overcapacities in many markets. The real challenge lies less in infrastructure availability itself and more in the perception among drivers that charging options are insufficient, a perception that continues to slow adoption.

Innovation moves at the speed of infrastructure.  

Automakers have delivered on vehicle performance. Consumers are increasingly open to change. But awareness of the charging system, and the broader infrastructure around it, continues to lag behind the pace of innovation. Unless drivers are convinced there is a reliable, seamless, and scalable charging ecosystem in place, even the best-designed EV will struggle to convert interest into ownership.

Similar challenges arise with vehicle-to-X (V2X) technology (using an EV battery to feed power back into homes or the grid). Drivers and would-be buyers alike see clear upside thanks to lower costs, greater sustainability, and the chance to make EV ownership more rewarding. But enthusiasm alone won’t carry the technology into the mainstream.  

Adoption still runs into familiar roadblocks: limited awareness, patchy technology availability, unclear legislation, and complicated contracts. Just as pressing are consumer anxieties around range, battery wear-and-tear, and unease over who controls their data. Only 59% are comfortable sharing personal driving behavior. One in two would hesitate to let energy providers manage access to their battery. For V2X to live up to its promise, the industry will require straightforward communication that addresses misconceptions head-on and builds trust with drivers. 
 
In some markets, manufacturers are experimenting with EV-confidence bundles – offers that pair vehicles with charging credits, battery-health warranties, or residual value guarantees to offset perceived risk. Others are exploring modular EV options, such as range extenders, to bridge the charging gap for hesitant first-time adopters. This is a clear signal that buyers are not rejecting electric but hedging charging risk.  

But ultimately, these are stopgaps. The long-term solution will depend on aligning technology, infrastructure, policy, and trust into a coherent, user-centric system. One that meets consumers where they are and gets them where they want to go.

Because in the end, the EV transition isn’t being held back by the next innovation. It’s being held back by the last mile.