Over 61% of car shoppers do not have a specific car in mind when buying a new vehicle. Instead, shoppers seek a vehicle that will best meet their needs within their price range. Car sites provide search methods that cater to shoppers who know what vehicle they want. Electric Driver created a needs-based search to help shoppers find the right electric car for those who do not have a specific vehicle in mind.
What is Needs-Based-Search
You want to address a need whenever you buy a product or service. For example, when my wife and I had our son, we outgrew our Camry; we needed a safer vehicle with decent mileage to seat seven people. So we bought a new 2011 Highlander, which we kept until we purchased our electric car. Whenever you shop for an electric vehicle, you probably have s set of needs you want to address. A needs-based search is designed to help you find electric cars that most closely meet your needs within your price range. We have defined needs into the following:
- Price Range: Your price range will help Electric Driver filter out vehicles only to show cars that meet all your criteria. If Electric Driver cannot address all your criteria, we will show electric cars that most closely meet your needs.
- Seating: The following criteria: Electric Driver will ask you how many people you need to seat at the minimum.
- Battery Range: The minimum distance you want to travel on a single charge is another crucial factor. Typically, it would be best to think of the miles you need to cover your daily driving. Also, if you live in an extremely hot or code environment, I recommend you factor in an extra 20% range.
- Location: Electric Driver will ask for your location to show you how many electric car chargers are available near your home. It would be best to be confident you have a charger where you travel if you need to charge.
- What Matters Most to You: How you will evaluate each electric car you see is important to you. We have nine criteria you can use to find vehicles best meet your needs. Some criteria we came up with to define needs-based searches are listed below.
Needs-Based Search Criteria
- Safety: If you are looking for a safe vehicle, selecting safety will help identify secure options. Electric Driver will show you the safest cars that meet your criteria. What Electric Driver uses to filter out the safest electric vehicles is how well each car fared in crash tests and safety features that help reduce the severity of an accident.
- Performance: If you are looking for a fast electric car, you will select performance. The performance we filter vehicles based on their top speed, acceleration, horsepower, and drive type (Think two-wheel or all-wheel drive).
- Cost to Drive: For those of you who want a vehicle with a low operating cost, you would select cost to drive: What cost to drive will show you cars that will have lower electricity bills, maintenance, and insurance costs. The idea is to lower your monthly cost of owning an electric vehicle.
- Infotainment: For those interested in navigation, streaming capabilities, and entertainment within your electric vehicle, infotainment captures these needs.
- Cargo Capacity: Selecting cargo capacity will show you the cars with the largest storage space within your budget and other criteria.
- Reliability: Selecting reliability, Electric Driver will show you electric cars with the best warranty and the least reported issues. Complaints and recall information help you form your opinion on the most reliable electric vehicle.
- Charging Time: If you want to wait for the least while charging, Electric Driver can show you electric cars that charge quickly based on your budget and criteria.
- Carbon Emissions: Lastly, we look at how much emissions electricity purchased in your area generate. We track by state how your electricity is generated and how much carbon emissions are created.
Ranking Your Needs
Speaking of what matters to you, not all needs are equal. Electric Driver allows you to choose the most important or least ordered needs. All you need to do is decide what is most important to you first, the next most important need, and so on. Once you are ready to proceed, Electric Driver does the heavy lifting. Electric Driver searches all available vehicle models to show you what electric cars best fit your needs. Visit Electric Driver to find the right electric vehicle using a needs-based search.