EV Charger Installation Sparks Dealership Sticker Shock

Washington DC March 31, 2022; The AIADA online reported that a lot of dealers have discovered that installing powerful fast chargers for electric vehicles — as some brands are requiring dealerships to do — is a complicated, expensive and time-consuming exercise.

Automotive News reported that former AIADA Chairman and New Jersey dealer Rick DeSilva said he ran into a problem with installing chargers at Liberty Hyundai in Mahwah, N.J.

"Rockland Electric Co. said, 'We've got to get you more power' because what we had coming in from the street wasn't enough," he said at the NADA Show.

DeSilva's son, Mike, an AIADA board member, co-owner and dealer manager at Liberty Hyundai said in a phone interview, "the dealership is "on the hook" to pay for a new, more powerful power line from the street to the dealership, and the utility company is still "months away" from the actual installation.

He's hoping the dealership qualifies for some local incentive money for installing EV chargers, but there's no guarantee, and that they haven't received an official estimate but have been told the service upgrade will be $50,000 to $100,000 in addition to the cost of the chargers and site work.