Electric vehicles (EVs) have been on an interesting trajectory over the past few years.
Remember back in 2018? Legacy automakers were practically tripping over one another to announce they'd totally phase out internal combustion engines by 2030 or potentially even earlier.
Now in 2026, most large automakers have delayed or altogether canceled their EV plans. But despite changes like declining sales in the United States and the spike in lithium prices over the last year, EVs still have a place on the roads of tomorrow. The future might just be delayed a bit.
And if you're still optimistic about electric cars (and there are many reasons to be) then you might consider giving Volkswagen (VWAGY 0.47%) a look.
OTC: VWAGY
Key Data Points
The people's electric car
Volkswagen had one of the most aggressive EV schedules of any legacy automakers. But now, the company has scaled back its EV goals. In 2024 it reinvested $64 billion back into developing new gas-powered cars. And in mid-2025 Volkswagen announced it would be delaying its next-generation EV architecture into the late 2020s.
However, Volkswagen has not given up on its EV plans. And in fact, it might be going about developing them in a smarter way.
Image source: Getty Images.
EV range anxiety is a very real thing. So are some of the costs associated with EVs.
According to AAA, the number of people who consider themselves likely or very likely to buy a fully electric car has shrunk from 25% in 2022 to 16% in 2025 and the percentage of people who consider themselves unlikely or very unlikely to buy a full EV has grown from 51% in 2022 to 63% in 2025.
The main reasons cited were range anxiety, the potential costs of repairing a battery (the most expensive part of an EV), and the overall higher upfront costs of buying an EV. That problem has been worsened by the cost of lithium more than doubling over the past 12 months and the end of the EV tax credit.
So Volkswagen is exploring extended-range EVs. Essentially, they work similarly to plug-in hybrids. They have an electric powertrain paired with a small gas engine that acts as a generator. These solve the range anxiety problem and mitigate the cost problem a bit. Because the car has a range-extending engine, the battery can be smaller and less expensive.
If Volkswagen goes this route, it can win over potential EV buyers put off by range anxiety and get them in the funnel to consider one of the company's full EVs next. Because once you own an EV, range anxiety decreases significantly.
As a long-term solution to get people to buy electric cars, extended-range EVs sound like a winning strategy. And you don't need to worry about Volkswagen running out of money while it implements its long-term strategies.
The company is a slow, steady growth engine with a revenue compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.25% over the past decade. And despite the fact that it's up 25% over the past year, Volkswagen looks like a good value right now.
Volkswagen's trailing-12-month price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) is sitting at 7.6, compared to 9.46 for BMW, 9.62 for Toyota Motor, and 26.21 for General Motors.
By my math that makes Volkswagen worth a look if you're bullish on EVs in the long term but realistic about their short-term struggles.
