A joint study by the highly respected Karlsruhe Institute of Technology and the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research finds that plug-in hybrid cars with at least 36 miles of electric-only range (think Chevy Volt) are just as good at keeping carbon emissions out of the atmosphere as pure battery electric cars (think Chevy Bolt).
The big electric car sales story again in November was that Chevy Bolt sales rose again, and took the #1 spot again.
The next tier was Tesla’s showroom — the Model S and Model X — based on my estimates for the month*.
The US electric car market has continued to grow at a rapid pace in the past year — led by California’s particularly strong electric car market, of course. From January through August, sales of 8 fully electric cars* grew 82% in the country. Sales of 6 plug-in hybrid cars were up 28%. Overall, that meant sales of these 14 plug-in car were up 40%.
Not that long ago, only a few electric cars were on the market. Nowadays, there are a few dozen. We certainly have a few favorites here on CleanTechnica, but every plug-in car really has its own selling points. I’m sure I don’t have a comprehensive list of these in my head, and many of the points are definitely as subjective as opinions about music or movies, but below are many of my thoughts on why I’d recommend various plug-in models.
Tesla Model 3 is here, and that has pushed me to again incorporate Tesla sales estimates into our monthly US electric car sales reports. Well, that and a repeated request from readers to bring back Tesla’s US sales estimates*.
The battle for the top electric vehicle sales title is underway between Toyota’s Prius Prime and GM’s Chevrolet Volt and Bolt.
As I noted last month, due to Tesla’s higher and higher production rates and little insight into where those cars are shipped, we’ve decided to stop estimating Tesla’s US sales/deliveries. That said, generally speaking, we expect that Tesla ships approximately 2,000–3,000 Model S and Model X each (so, 4,000–6,000 combined) to US customers. So, more likely than not, the Model S and Model X are the highest-selling electric cars in the United States.
When it comes to buying a car, price is a notable issue of consideration to … almost everyone. So, a lot of people want to know what the cheapest electric car is. I’d asked you what car you think that is … but we just put it in the title.
Once upon a time, there was an epic monthly sales battle in the US between the Nissan LEAF and the Chevy Volt. They were neck and neck for ages, sometimes changing places several months in a row. Nowadays, the market is growing, and more relevant is probably looking at the Chevy Bolt, Chevy Volt, Ford Energi models, Nissan LEAF, Toyota Prius Prime, and maybe BMW i3. The cars are in a similar price range and class, but each offers a unique mix of features and style. Importantly, they are also the models that are available “nationwide.”
Aside from Tesla topping the US electric car sales chart (and my postulations about that), there were some other interesting stats and takeaways from March US electric car sales.
