The goal to prod a majority of Americans into buying emission-free electric cars over the following decade is a pipe dream, a former executive at three top US automakers said Sunday.
“The regulation is way ahead of the general public,” Bob Lutz — ex-exec at General Motors, Ford and Chrysler — told John Catsimatidis on WABC 770 AM’s the Cats Roundtable. “The American public shouldn’t be ready for the broad adoption of electric vehicles.”
“We don’t have enough electricity-generating infrastructure,” he scoffed.
President Biden goals to make electric car buys as much as 60% of all recent vehicle sales by 2030 to cut back carbon emissions — and make up two out of three sales by 2032.
Recent York and California each have aggressive rules to phase out gas-powered cars for electric autos.
Lutz guessed 10% to 12% of drivers might want electric cars.
“That’s good,” he said. “But the rest still wants internal combustion.”
![Bob Lutz.](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/09/NYPICHPDPICT000030137889.jpg?w=1024)
![The interior of a Rolls Royce Spectre.](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/09/NYPICHPDPICT000030071071-e1693761544719.jpg?w=1024)
“This transition by 2030 is just not going to occur,” he added. “What is going to occur is … everybody will proceed to make quite a lot of internal-combustion vehicles, which sell. They usually’ll make electric vehicles, which even now will not be selling on the pace that everyone would really like.”
In accordance with Lutz, “what’s going to occur is that the governments … are going to should … push out the deadline. Or, if it’s an authoritarian government like China, they’ll just say, ‘You either buy an electric vehicle or you purchase no vehicle in any respect.’
“Well, that may match in China. Nevertheless it’s not going to work in the USA or Europe. What is going to occur … is the deadline will get pushed out and pushed out and pushed out.”
![An AMG GTR is shown on display before the start of the 2022 North American International Auto Show September 13, 2022 in Detroit, Michigan.](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/09/NYPICHPDPICT000030143365.jpg?w=1024)
![A woman charges her Tesla at an electric vehicle charging station in Austin, June 30, 2022.](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/09/NYPICHPDPICT000030137896.jpg?w=1024)
Lutz said Americans should consider buying an electric car and see in the event that they prefer it — particularly in the event that they’re not often driving long distances that might necessitate pit stops to charge up.
“The federal government fuel economy rules … can’t be met without broad-scale electrification. What we’re seeing is electrification [adoption] that might occur naturally, because there’s rather a lot to be said for electric vehicles. But straight away, it’s being forced by governments for environmental reasons,” he said.
Also within the interview, Lutz called former Chrysler CEO Lee Iacocca the very best auto boss he had — and praised current GM CEO Mary Barra, who worked under Lutz when he an executive there.