Norwegians more sceptical of Chinese EVs, but still buying more: survey

Chinese-made electric vehicles (EVs) are being met with growing scepticism in Norway, which is leading the world in EV adoption, but their sales continue to rise, the Norwegian Electric Vehicle Association said Friday.

A survey by the association showed that in contrast, scepticism toward Tesla, the EV brand headed by Elon Musk, fell markedly over the past year.

Electric cars now account for more than 95 percent of new registrations in Norway, the highest share in the world.

The survey was conducted from March 31 to May 3 among nearly 15,000 owners of an electric car in Norway, the association said.

Nearly a third of respondents (31 percent) said they would avoid buying a Chinese brand for unspecified "political reasons", compared to 23 percent a year earlier.

"New cars are, in practice, computers on wheels," the association's secretary general Christina Bu said in a statement.

"As data security and privacy receive more attention, it is only natural that more consumers become concerned about where the cars come from and how the data is handled," she added.

A few years ago, Norwegian security researchers discovered that a car made by the Chinese maker NIO was transmitting data to China.

Other tests carried out on a bus from China's Yutong revealed that the manufacturer had access to the vehicle's control system and could, in theory, stop it or render it unusable remotely.

Sales of Chinese brands such as BYD, NIO and Dongfeng, or brands owned by Chinese companies like Volvo and Polestar, have nonetheless grown significantly in Norway, accounting for 25 percent of the market in the first half of the year.

Back in 2019, they were virtually non-existent.

"This suggests that consumers weigh several factors against one another when they are buying a car," Bu said.

"For some, factors such as price and technology are decisive, while others are influenced by moral dilemmas and uncertainty about data sharing and security issues," she said.

Meanwhile the share of respondents sceptical toward Tesla, which has faced opposition over Musk's political engagements and support of far-right leaders, has dropped to 24 percent from 43 percent.

"Last year, Elon Musk's political involvement was highly visible and, unsurprisingly, provoked strong reactions," Bu said.

"This year, there has been less attention on this, and that may have led to fewer people saying they would not have chosen Tesla," she added.

Tesla remains the best-selling car brand in Norway with a market share of 17.3 percent of sales since the beginning of the year.

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BYD COMPANY

Dongfeng Motor Corporation

Volvo

Tesla