Very few individuals come close to leveling the stature of Mr. Rick Hendrick for what he has achieved in the motorsports world and beyond. Not only does he own NASCAR’s winningest team, Hendrick Motorsports, but he also runs a network of 100 car dealerships. Given his experience and observations in the automobile and racing industry for over 50 years, it is fair to say that his opinions and views are much respected. And so was the case when he shared his honest opinion regarding consumer EV cars.

“We’re too aggressive with the EV market” – Rick Hendrick

With the turn of the new decade, NASCAR seemed to have been leaning towards its EV project more aggressively. They planned to showcase their secret EV project this season at the Busch Light Clash, but nothing materialized with rain playing spoilsport. However, not everyone is sold on the idea of rolling out the EV racecar in the sport soon. This has created a sort of tug-of-war between the two ideas.

As far as the EV consumer market is concerned, the projected growth of the EV market has been stagnant, and this is a concern for dealerships and car manufacturers. As reported by Robb Report, Mr. H shared his take on the issue, stating that the market can’t force consumers to buy what they don’t want. “The customer is going to dictate what you build. I’ve been in the automobile business for almost 50 years, and you can’t force customers to buy what they don’t want. We were too aggressive with the EV market. I think the EV market will be there one day, but we’re not ready for it”. 

He also explained how hybrid race cars are a better alternative to the EV project in NASCAR. “I think our cars, the cars we race today, are built to be hybrid. So we can go hybrid. In IMSA, they’re running hybrids. I don’t see as much pressure on EVs because that’s just almost impossible to run in a race unless you have a hybrid to charge it.”

There are very few NASCAR fans who disagree with Rich Hendrick’s opinion, and many of them completely backed his stance on leaning towards a hybrid model.

Fans react to Rick Henrick’s unfiltered take on EVs vs hybrid automobiles

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Frustrated EV car users agreed with Mr. H’s take and explained what major roadblocks they face because of an EV car. “That’s a huge issue. Many rural areas don’t have charging stations. And those same areas will have mass amounts of mass living situations like apartments, townhomes, etc”.

A fan added that without a large-scale charging infrastructure, consumers won’t prefer picking EVs. “He’s not wrong. All romanticism about internal combustion vehicles aside, consumers won’t take to EVs in mass until charging infrastructure is built out even more”.

Sharing a vital solution to the issue, a fan chimed in by stating, “Make them more affordable and increase access to charging and more people will want one. US automakers are withholding more affordable models”.

Trying to connect the dots, a user suggested that Rick Hendrick is echoing the sentiments of all car manufacturers. “Rick may be echoing what all car manufacturers are feeling, which is that their EV push is a big failure. I know Denny has mentioned Toyota has put a pause on their EV program due to lack of interest”.

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Where do you stand on this ragging debate about EV automobiles in general? And would you be open to the idea of an EV race car in NASCAR? Do let us know in the comments.

Rick Hendrick Proud of the Tribute to His Late Son With Kyle Larson Winning at COTA