Chinese electric vehicles are coming to Canada, if only a limited quota of them, and they could be met with a flurry of willing buyers, according to a new survey from Abacus Data and Clean Energy Canada.
More than one-third (35%) of Canadians are open to buying a Chinese EV. And among the 50% of Canadians who are open to buying an EV generally, 70% express varying levels of interest in getting a Chinese one.
Half of adults (50%) under age 30 are open to purchasing a Chinese EV, though interest declines with age, with 28% of respondents over 60 saying they would consider one.
Regionally, openness to Chinese EVs ranges from 45% in Quebec to 24% in Alberta, consistent with interest in EVs generally.
Meanwhile, half of Canadians (51%) also have a positive or neutral view of the cars, with 18% believing Chinese EVs are likely superior to the ones sold in Canada today and another 32% suspecting they are of a similar quality. Just one in five (21%) think they are likely inferior cars, while 28% remain uncertain.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, views diverge greatly between those open to buying an EV and those uninterested in the technology: 71% of would-be EV buyers believe they are likely good cars compared to just 32% of non-EV buyers.
QUOTE
“Canadians are paying attention to what’s happening around the world. They’re reading stories about the popularity and performance of Chinese EVs, and they know that Canada’s EV market has fallen behind. But more than anything, Canadians want an EV they can afford upfront. High levels of interest in Chinese EVs likely represents just that: a desire for vehicles that are affordable today, as many cash-strapped Canadians simply can’t wait five years to break even on a car that eventually saves them money.
“While Canada’s limited quota could mean more willing buyers than cars available, the federal government can leverage the China deal with complementary measures aimed at bringing in more affordable EVs from other carmakers, such as by aligning our car safety standards with Europe, reintroducing purchase incentives, and maintaining regulations that compel automakers to meet the market with affordable EVs.”
—Trevor Melanson, director of insights and communications, Clean Energy Canada
The survey was conducted with 2,498 Canadians from January 22 to 27, 2026. A random sample of panelists were invited to complete the survey from a set of partner panels based on the Lucid exchange platform. These partners are typically double opt-in survey panels, blended to manage out potential skews in the data from a single source. The margin of error for a comparable probability-based random sample of the same size is +/- 1.96%, 19 times out of 20. The data were weighted according to census data to ensure that the sample matched Canada’s population according to age, gender, and region. Totals may not add up to 100 due to rounding.
