EV transition could take longer than the Biden administration wants. Here's why.

The US government wants half of all new vehicle sales to be electric by 2030. But reaching that goal looks increasingly difficult due to obstacles ranging from pricing to charging infrastructure.

Earlier this week more than 3,000 auto dealers asked the White House to “tap the brakes” on its electric vehicle target. The letter, which was published online, states EV “enthusiasm has stalled," adding battery electric cars "are not selling nearly as fast as they are arriving at our dealerships — even with deep price cuts, manufacturer incentives, and generous government incentives.”

The letter states that a majority of consumers are not ready to make the shift.

"They are concerned about BEVs [battery electric vehicles] being unaffordable. Many do not have garages for home charging or easy access to public charging stations. Customers are also concerned about the loss of driving range in cold or hot weather," the letter reads, adding, "Today’s current technology is not adequate to support the needs of the majority of our consumers."

In response, the White House pointed to the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) passed last year, which incentivizes the adoption of EVs by offering $7,500 credits to qualifying households.

The IRA "makes EVs more affordable and helps Americans save money when driving," said a White House spokesperson, noting in a statement that the "EPA’s proposed standards are not a mandate — they do not force anyone to manufacture, sell, or buy specific vehicles. The proposed standards are performance-based, meaning that manufacturers can choose to comply in ways that make the most sense for them and their respective fleets."

'Price point extremely high'

The credit offered through the IRA isn't enough to move the needle for mass adoption of EVs, according to one industry watcher.

"The biggest challenge for EV penetration is the price point is extremely high," Ramanan Krishnamoorti, vice president for energy and innovation at the University of Houston, told Yahoo Finance.

"Only the top 10% population is able to afford to buy EVs," he said. "We thought there was lots of promise for prices to come down."

As the Federal Reserve has raised interest rates in its fight against inflation, the higher cost of borrowing has made it difficult for drivers to finance electric vehicles and for manufacturers to build them.

"What we had two years ago, that cheap money, isn't available today," said Krishnamoorti.

Virtually every cost associated with EVs has gone up, from labor to batteries. Meanwhile, demand has softened, prompting legacy automakers to recently scale back their multibillion-dollar EV transformation plans.

"Many North America customers interested in buying EVs are unwilling to pay premiums for them over gas or hybrid vehicles, sharply compressing EV prices and profitability," automaker Ford (F) said in its latest earnings release.

Read more: Are electric cars more expensive to insure?

Industry titan Elon Musk echoed the need to make EVs more affordable.

“I just can’t emphasize enough how important cost is. … We have to make our products more affordable so people can buy [them],” said the Tesla (TSLA) CEO during the company's most recent earnings call.

It's a challenge manufacturers expect to still be tackling through 2024.

"In 2025, I think we're going to really get at that affordability issue. And during this whole period, what we'll also see is continued expansion of the charging infrastructure. Those are what need to happen," GM CEO Mary Barra told Yahoo Finance's Executive Editor Brian Sozzi earlier this week.

Driver anxiety over the charging station infrastructure, which is still being built out, is another major challenge. Drivers often complain about un-compatible or unreliable stations.

"[Consumers] want to know when they get to a charger, it's going to be available, and it's going to work," said GM's Barra.

Earlier this year the government announced a deal with Tesla aimed at building a network of chargers open for use by all EV drivers by the end of 2024.

"That EV infrastructure is not coming in fast enough. Even when it comes in, what we are finding is that charging times are just too long," said Krishnamoorti.

'Shift away from EV's'

Given the cost and infrastructure challenges of EVs, consumers are increasingly turning to hybrid models, which shut off the gasoline feature when at rest.

Hybrid models BMW X5 and Toyota Highlander were among the top two fastest-selling used cars in October, according to recent data from iseecars.com. The data shows EVs are selling at a slower pace, despite their prices falling faster than hybrid or gasoline models.

The research shows the average electric vehicle is taking 57.5 days to leave a dealership, versus 20 days a year ago. By comparison, a hybrid now takes 37.2 days to leave a dealership versus 20 days a year ago.

"This just tells you that there is a marketplace shift away from EVs to more of these sustainable solutions," said Krishnamoorti.

Despite these challenges, EV sales in the third quarter of this year are still growing — jumping by nearly 50% from a year ago to 313,000. The EV market share in the US hit 7.9% — its highest-ever level.

"You need the time to build out the capacity, to build out the charging stations, to bring the cost down, and to advance," US senior adviser for energy Amos Hochstein told Yahoo Finance in an interview last month.

"So you're going to see this major growth in sales and adaptation, and then it may slow down a bit and then it will grow again," he added.

Ines Ferre is a senior business reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter at @ines_ferre.

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