5. Will the use of Leonardo DiCaprio help with penetration of the US EV market? High levels of air pollution and carbon emissions, as well as a perceived energy shortage, are all cited as reasons why electric vehicles will surely become a major factor in the global auto industry going forward. The flip side of that coin is that high costs, short driving ranges, long charging times, lack of charging facilities and battery maintenance issues are major obstacles faced by all electric vehicle manufacturers.

So far, the negatives of electric vehicles appear to outweigh the positives in the minds of individual consumers. Despite the media hype, electric cars have not yet grabbed a meaningful share in any of the three major auto markets – North America, Western Europe or China – which collectively account for 60 percent of the total global auto market. Moreover, declining oil prices and the increase in energy supply caused by the development of shale gas reserves threaten to halt any momentum that may have been achieved in recent years when oil was trading above $100 per barrel. At the current price of $70 per barrel (end of summer 2018), the economics of electric vehicles have become a bit less attractive to the consumer.

Despite of these facts, the global number of electric vehicles has exploded since 2011. But the 320,000 electric cars bought worldwide in 2014 should be seen in comparison with the roughly 68 million new passenger cars that were bought worldwide in 2014. Three years later (2017), the total number of new passenger cars has increased to 74 million, but the sales of electric cars has increased to only 1,200,000.