US carmakers keep touting cheap electric vehicles in advertising, while in reality they are hardly making any. The largest gaps between the promised starting price and available inventory are evident in the most popular models. (Swipe left to see our chart.) Kia’s EV6, a hot seller of late, had an average sticker price of almost $54,200 in July, 32% above the starting price Kia has crowed about since launching the car. The pragmatic Chevrolet Bolt — purportedly the most affordable EV in the US at $26,595 — was selling for almost one-third more this summer, at $34,874 on average. Pictured here is John Fitzgerald Weaver, who lives in Boston and builds commercial solar farms. He had to schlep to Long Island to find a Hyundai Ioniq 5 without all-wheel drive — the only variant less than $47,500. “When I saw they had it, I was like ‘Sweet, I’ll buy this today,’” Weaver says. No matter that the car came with an extra $1,000 fee, and wouldn’t arrive for more than a month. Of course, there is sound economics behind all this. Arguably for the first time ever, the companies making and selling cars have more demand than supply, according to Edmunds analyst Ivan Drury. Increasing supply takes time, particularly with a new technology like electric drivetrains, and car companies are rushing to add assembly lines and source batteries. In the meantime, they’re pushing prices up. Exacerbating that dynamic is the fact that so many of the current parade of EVs are brand new. Are you shopping for an EV right now? Tell us where you live, what models have your eye, and if you are having any luck getting behind the wheel. Read more at the link in our bio or visit: bloomberg.com/green 📷: John Fitzgerald Weaver