Passenger EV now part of the mainstream says retail group boss

The chief executive of the NZX-listed Colonial Motor Company, Alexander Gibbons, has taken a swipe at the government’s Clean Car Scheme and he also declared that passenger electric vehicles are now part of the mainstream market in New Zealand

The Colonial Motor Company operates car, motorcycle, truck and agricultural equipment dealerships throughout New Zealand. It’s passenger vehicle brands include Ford, Isuzu Ute, Kia, Nissan, Mazda, Peugeot, and Suzuki.

In the company’s 2023 Annual Report, Gibbons was critical of the Government’s Clean Car Scheme rollout, saying it was “an unrelenting pipeline of compliance regulations and requirements, as well as little warning of tinkering”. 

“Vehicle importers scrambled to cope with sudden artificial spikes in demand and, through no fault of their own, suffered the consequences,” Gibbons says. 

“Vehicles already ‘in build’ or in transit incurred higher fees, with virtually no ability for the importer, dealer or customer to respond. 

“The most recent example was the haste to impose increased Clean Car Scheme fees that took effect from July 1 this year. All this achieved was to again pull forward demand, this time to 30 June. 

“This resulted in record new vehicle registrations for that month, followed by the inevitable slump in subsequent months,” he says,

Gibbons says further tightening of the Clean Car Schemes should continue to ensure the adoption of new energy vehicles (NEVs), with many hybrid models soon to incur an emissions penalty due to the changes that came into effect on July 1. 

“Electrified vehicles (EVs including battery electric, plug-in hybrid and pure hybrids) in the passenger and SUV segments can now be considered mainstream in New Zealand,” Gibbons says. 

“As demand pressures ease, brands that fail to deliver competitive models in the new energy space will find life increasingly difficult under the current Clean Car legislation. 

“With such a wide array of powertrains available today, the challenge for our sales teams is ensuring customers drive away in a vehicle that is suited to their needs, both in terms of function and residual value. 

“Not all new energy vehicles are created equal and pure BEVs, while progressively improving, have yet to solve the limitations associated with payload and towing range,” he says.