- JD Power’s 2024 APEAL Study Finds Non-Tesla Electric Vehicles Have Higher Satisfaction Than Tesla Electric Vehicles
- Electric car buyers from traditional brands are more satisfied than buyers of gasoline or PHEV cars
- Mainstream Tesla buyers who value value are more critical than fans of the brand
Tesla appears to be having a harder time attracting new electric car buyers to the brand, while various electric vehicle efforts from major brands are gaining traction with buyers.
This is a market shift that would have been unimaginable just a few years ago: Non-Tesla electric car owners are more satisfied with their cars more than Tesla owners with their cars, according to JDPower’s annual APEAL study released Thursday.
But it’s not just Tesla that’s ahead. Power said non-Tesla electric vehicles scored higher in satisfaction than Teslas and higher than gasoline-powered cars and plug-in hybrids.
APEAL, which stands for Automotive Performance, Execution, and Layout, includes feedback from 99,144 owners of new 2024 model year vehicles after 90 days of ownership. As JD Power points out, the study has correlated vehicle resale value for decades, so don’t expect that Tesla in your driveway to be an appreciating asset.
Mainstream electric vehicles have not fared well in recent years, with J.D. Power finding that battery-powered EVs from mainstream and non-Tesla brands performed worse than comparable gas-powered vehicles in overall satisfaction. But they have been on the rise. In 2020 and 2021, Tesla (unofficially) topped the study. By last year, J.D. Power found that non-Tesla BEVs had closed the gap with gas-powered models.
JD Power points to improved interior storage space and better quality materials as some of the reasons. Traditional automakers are doing better in satisfaction.
“For BEVs, recent launches from traditional manufacturers have surpassed longtime leader Tesla when it comes to the emotional attachment and excitement owners feel about their new vehicle,” said Frank Hanley, senior director of automotive benchmarking at JD Power.
Tesla Model Y 2024 – Powered by Tesla, Inc.
Tesla needs to impress newcomers, not just fans
Part of the problem is Tesla Buyers Are Diverging into a mix of loyal and repeat buyers (“Tesla fans”) and newcomers “conquer” buyers who have jumped from other brands first time to EV, in some cases. And it seems Tesla cars are not making much of an impression on the conquest group.
“Their buyer persona is changing,” Hanley told Green Car Reports. “They started out with a lot of tech buyers, but obviously with their pricing changes, they’re becoming more mainstream and getting a different type of buyer.”
Conquest buyers are now coming from all over, Hanley explains, especially Model 3 and Model Y. A series of Tesla price cut making those models more accessible to more customers.
And the gap in owner satisfaction between those who have owned Teslas and those who are new to the brand is huge—a gap larger than that of all luxury brands, according to Hanley. For those who have bought into Tesla, there is no single point of criticism, he says; negative feedback covers nearly every aspect of the car experience.
Porsche Taycan 2025
Kia EV9 2024
Hyundai Ioniq 5 2025
Porsche, Kia, Hyundai among top brands in electric vehicle appeal
Porsche is the highest ranked luxury brand in this year’s study and JD Power notes that Porsche Taycan as good as other Porsche models. Hanley also noted that the EV from BMW, Cadillac and Genesis All of them are performing better than average. “They’re definitely on the right track with battery electric vehicles,” he said of those brands.
Among the mainstream brands, Kia and Hyundai are all in the top five offering a wide range of electric vehicles, supporting the market appeal with popular models such as Kia EV9 three-row electric SUVs and Hyundai Ioniq 5 electric crossover
