Search for electric vehicles increases amid high gas prices

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Interest in electric vehicles grew by 22% in the last two weeks in the Golden State, with Fresno ranking as the city with the 4th most interest.

Nick VinZant with Quote Wizard says high gas prices and long commutes are to blame.

"Gas prices always go up and down, but I think what we see this time is people considering really making a change in their habits because of the effect that gas can have on their finances," he said.

John Flower, owner of Premier Auto Sales in Visalia, has been in the business for 30 years and says consumer desires are always shifting.

They're experiencing strong demand for cars but there's not yet a large market for used electric vehicles.

Another dealership Action News spoke with says they're also not seeing unusual demand for electric cars but they says it remains a challenge to get any new cars on the lot - gas or electric.

Automakers are still struggling to recover from supply chain shortages

Over on the used car market, Flower was at an auction Wednesday morning and says prices remain high.

"Inventory being down 40% than it what it was in 2021 is going to prompt the value," he said. "Even though we do have a gas increase, we still have a high demand for vehicles and low supply."

So while search interest for electric cars has spiked in the last month due to gas prices, they remain hard to find and impractical for some people in more rural areas.