Driver stunned after seemingly unprovoked road rage incident: 'Anyone else experiencing this?'

Driving an EV seems like it would be a dream: quieter rides, quicker acceleration, and lower costs over time. But for some electric vehicle drivers, their experiences come with unexpected reactions.

A Ford Mustang Mach-E owner sparked conversation on Reddit by asking a simple question: "Road rage directed at EV drivers? Anyone else experiencing this? Noticing an uptick in angry memes on Facebook and an increase in tailgating, squeezing my lane, etc."

Responses poured in from EV drivers across the country. Some said their experiences had been overwhelmingly positive, noting curiosity and excitement from others about the electric SUV. "People love this damn car," one Mach-E owner wrote. "... I talked with an older gentleman outside the bank the other day for over half an hour about it."

Many Mach-E drivers found that most people "don't even know it's an EV."

Some believed the poster was hypersensitive, saying that kind of behavior on the road was a result of just owning something new and expensive. But the poster wondered if it represented a split between those in rural and urban areas and their attitudes toward EVs.

Others have experienced similarly unlucky situations. Several commenters described being flipped off, aggressively tailgated, or targeted with vandalism or coal rolling — especially in areas closely tied to coal, oil, and gas production, with many people still falling for common EV myths about battery production and driving range.

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"I still can't understand why some people get so upset over a purchase they didn't make," one user wrote.

Someone else said: "Nobody seems to realize my Polestar 2 is an EV. Behavior is wildly different than when I'm driving my Model S. So yeah, it's always been gross, but it's been worse lately. Florida man land."

As EVs become more common, drivers may hope curiosity and conversation will outweigh anger to make roads safer for everyone.

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