Funny thing happened when gasoline prices surged in early 2022.

A surprising number of luxury car owners traded-in their internal combustion engine Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi vehicles for electrified Ford Mustang Mach-E, Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6 SUVs.

So says a recent Edmunds study which lays out “Four Major EV Trends to Watch” and concludes that the EVs from three mainstream brands Ford, Hyundai and Kia, are winning significant conquest sales from luxury and other mainstream brands, commanding top dollar transaction prices and drawing buyers under 45.

Though gasoline prices helped pique buyers’ interest in these EVs, what’s really driving sales are attributes such as powertrain, in-vehicle technology, styling, handling, and driving range, said Ivan Drury, director of Insights at Edmunds.

Also making those vehicles attractive is that some new EVs and for the first time, some used ones qualify for tax rebates up to $7,500 under the federal Inflation Reduction Act.

Electric vehicles “are not simply redefining transportation, they are powering a seismic shift in consumer perception of the automotive giants that manufacture them that could create a competitive edge in the years to come,” the study predicts.

Willing to pay a premium

Released in December, the study examines EV purchase transactions from January through November 2022.

The average transaction price of the Ford Mustang Mach-E in the study was $57,988; for the Hyundai Ioniq 5 it was $54,643 and for Kia EV6 it was $57,178.

That compares to the average transaction price of $34,952 for Hyundai vehicles overall, of $34,651 for Kia vehicles overall and $55,609 for Ford vehicles overall.

Edmunds also found in the first nine months of 2022, 44.1% of EV buyers in the study were under age 45, up from 35.5% under age 45 for all new vehicles purchased.

Some early mainstream EV predecessors such as Honda Fit EV, Fiat 500e and Ford Focus EV, had relatively low mileage range, and were “boring and had no style,” Drury said.

But these new “EVs are a complete package and we’re seeing it reflected in that people are jumping into brands they never would have before and on top of that they’re a paying a premium dollar for it because they find it to be worthwhile,” he added.

EV sales and trade-ins

According to Edmunds’ sales and trade-in data for January through November 2022:

* Among Mustang Mach-E buyers, 23% traded luxury vehicles and 69% traded non-Ford vehicles. But when it came to buyers of Ford brand vehicles overall, only 6% traded-in luxury vehicles and 42% traded non-Ford vehicles.

* Among Hyundai Ioniq 5 buyers 17% traded luxury vehicles while 81% traded non-Hyundai vehicles. Among buyers of Hyundai brand vehicles overall, 7% traded luxury vehicles and 57% traded non-Hyundai vehicles.

* When it came to Kia EV6, 18% of buyers traded luxury vehicles and 79% traded non-Kia vehicles. Among buyers of Kia brand vehicles overall, 6% traded luxury brand nameplates and 61% traded non-Kia brand vehicles.

Speaking of luxury-trade-ins

Though the impact of selling used luxury vehicles on the lots of non-luxury dealerships that took them as trade-ins was not part of the study, Drury said many dealers welcome nicer, upscale used vehicles and see them as creating a halo effect for their businesses.

 “They may be older luxury cars, instead of those that are just coming off lease, but at the same time a 5- to 7-year-old Lexus or Audi product is still very good looking,” he said.

“You start seeing Kia dealers and Hyundai dealers having a lot of BMWs and Audis. It’s a marketing tool, an additional level of benefit beyond the first transaction.”

Price; miles per-charge matters

Edmunds chose Mustang Mach-E, Ioniq 5 and EV6 to examine because of their adequate sample sizes in terms of new sales and trade-ins and their mid-$50,000 transaction prices. Also making these vehicles good study candidates is their mileage range of 200 to 300 miles per-charge means that drivers can typically go 4-to-5 days between charges, Drury said.

Not counting “super fans” of Tesla EVs, consumer interest in EVs in general, has been slow to catch on. In 2021 389,410 or 2.6% of new vehicles sold were electric, Edmunds data shows.

But in early 2022, when gasoline prices increased, so did interest in EVs. By mid-March one of every four vehicles shopped for on Edmunds were either pure EVs, hybrids, or plug-in hybrids.

Though gasoline prices have eased, EV interest is still high, Drury said. From January through November 2022, 634,455 EVs were sold representing 5.1% of new vehicle sales, Edmunds data shows.

What luxury defectors would have bought

Many buyers who defected from luxury brands in the study probably would have bought an EV from a German or Japanese automaker, but those products weren’t readily available in early 2022. That limited availability and/or their high transaction price prevented them from being included in the study, Drury said.

For example, Audi e-tron sales occurred in the second half of 2022 and BMW ix debuted in March and in lower volumes, he said. Lexus’ RZ 450e is expected to debut in early 2023 according to Lexus.com and Mercedes-Benz EQS had an average transaction price of $118,482, according to Edmunds’ data.

“You’ve got a blend of upper-level, mainstream buyers and luxury buyers who can purchase one of these (Ford, Hyundai or Kia) EVs; they’re not cheap, but not ungodly expensive either,” Drury said. “It’s more like a $50,000, $60,000 purchase.

But despite the growing popularity of EVs, there is still uncertainty that keep people from buying them, especially when it comes to charging them.

Drury added: “That barrier of adequate charging stations near you is still huge.”