n=1. Consumers are under stress with car payments at $500-$1000/month and credit cards maxed out. I have no doubt folks like you will keep your car to the end (as long as you can afford it), but in the aggregate, high fuel prices will destroy demand for combustion vehicles simply out of the total cost of ownership economics as it relates to fuel costs.

You can see this today in the recent increase in used EV sales prices and gas guzzler repo rates over the last 90-120 days.

Car prices continue to rise. Auto lenders compensate with long-term loans - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49236530 - August 2026

US credit card debt climbs to $1.26tn, nearing last year’s record high - https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/aug/12/credit-card... - August 12th, 2026

Used EV prices climb as demand grows - https://www.axios.com/2026/07/22/used-ev-prices-gas-demand - July 22nd, 2026

Half of Americans struggle to afford groceries and gas, exclusive poll finds - https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jul/07/cost-of-liv... - July 7th, 2026

How High Are Car Repossession Rates in 2026? - https://americandefault.org/guides/car-repossession-rates/ - June 25th, 2026 ("Car repossessions are climbing fast, back near the levels the U.S. last saw coming out of the financial crisis. There is no official national repossession rate, so the clearest live gauge is the share of auto-loan balances that are seriously delinquent, and it is near record highs. Repossession is the step that comes after.")

Soaring car insurance premiums force many low-to-middle income Texans to do without - https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/economy/affordab... - April 1st, 2026 ("Approximately 12% percent of Texas car owners are uninsured.")

$1,000 car loan payments are on the rise, stressing household budgets - https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/27/business/1k-car-loan-payments... - January 27th, 2026

> The high monthly car payments — coupled with other changes in her household budget, including higher rent — caused Dickerson to fall deep into debt. “Now I’m relying on the credit cards to live, to pay for things that I can’t pay now,” she said. “Food and stuff you need — the electric bill, phone bill. You think you’ll be able to pay them off next month and then you can’t.” Record-high car prices coupled with high interest rates are leading to huge monthly car payments for many Americans. A record share of Americans — more than 20% — agreed to pay more than $1,000 per month for a new car loan at the end of the year, according to car sales site Edmunds. High monthly car payments are putting tremendous stress on household budgets already struggling to deal with a higher cost of living. But many Americans need a car for everyday use, like commuting to work and grocery shopping.