Today, we welcome Tom Maoli to CBT News. Maoli holds a number of different titles, including President and CEO of Celebrity Motor Cars, President and CEO of Real Estate Opportunity Investments LLC, and host of the show Go Big or Go Home on the iHeatRadio Network. Maoli joins the show to provide his perspective on the EV market, automakers selling directly to consumers, and other challenges facing the industry.
Maoli begins the conversation by discussing the readiness of the automotive market for electric vehicles. Maoli says that while President Biden is putting incentives in place to accelerate the arrival of EVs, the infrastructure has to improve first. Maoli uses the example of the winter storms that left many without power for over a week. If Texas didn’t have gas-powered vehicles, Many residents would have been without any form of transportation.
“I think we’re five, if not ten, years out before we see staggering numbers,” said Maoli when referencing how close the country was to fully embracing EVs. “I think it’s going to be a slow migration. I don’t think the population or the people are ready yet. I don’t think they trust it.”
Maoli then discusses the EV direct sales controversy. He says that electric vehicle manufacturers should have to go through the franchise system to sell their products. The system is already set up, and states already have laws that prevent large OEMs from overrunning small dealerships. Maoli says that consumers are hurt the most by the direct sales push as vehicles without franchise dealers will be more difficult to service.
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