It’s time for another monthly checkup on US auto sales. Surprisingly, more than a million people are still buying the 21st century equivalent of horses every month. I think the most interesting takeaway, though, is quickly running through the companies and car divisions that saw their sales drop last month (compared to the same month in 2018) and then the companies and car divisions that saw their sales rise.
After a great start of the year, the German plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) market continued on the right track in March, up 42% year over year (YoY) to 9,677 registrations. Fully electric vehicles (BEVs) grew at a fast pace (+75% YoY), while plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) remained flat (+1%).
The Swiss plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) market smashed its previous sales record (1,341 registrations) last month by registering 2,162 vehicles. That meant that the PEV share jumped to 7.5% (6.4% from fully electric vehicles and 1.1% from plug-in hybrids), pulling the 2019 PEV share to 5.3% and thus almost doubling last year’s result.
Last month, fully electric vehicles saw their registrations double year over year (YoY), pushing the overall market up +28% despite sales of every other powertrain type dropping at least 20%, which led to record fully electric vehicle (58%) and overall plug-in vehicle (69%) shares. As you already know, Tesla Model 3 deliveries went through the roof in March, with the model achieving 5,315 registrations, a new all-time record for any nameplate in Norway, whatever the fuel source.
The French plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) market recorded 6,136 registrations in March, up 14% year over year (YoY). A big portion of this growth came from the Tesla Model 3, which had 1,153 deliveries last month, the best result ever for a nameplate not called “Renault Zoe.”
In the first quarter of 2019, the Tesla Model 3 was again the #1 top selling car in the US luxury car market. It was far and away the winner. It was actually #13 in the overall US car market, and no other premium-class car even made the top 20.
Now that we’ve got a truly mass market electric car in the US (the 13th best selling car in the country in the first quarter of 2019 and the best selling luxury car), I’ve found it interesting to take a closer look at changes in all automakers’ overall car and automobile sales. I meticulously track changes from month to month and quarter to quarter using automaker sales reports for this purpose.
Tesla had the #1 top selling luxury car in the USA in the first quarter of 2019, but it didn’t win the title of top selling luxury car producer in the first quarter and also didn’t top the list of luxury automakers (cars + SUVs/CUVs/trucks). However, the Silicon Valley company did stay on the podium despite a 50% cut in the federal EV tax credit for Tesla buyers and despite the fact that most Tesla vehicles were shipped abroad (with the Model 3 making it overseas for the first time).
After the December delivery peak, the Dutch plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) market had another sales surge last month, with 4,721 plug-in registrations, up 252% year over year (YoY). That translates into a PEV share of 12% in March, and pulls the year-to-date count to 10,424 units (+224%), with the 2019 PEV share now at 9%. If we only consider fully electric vehicles (BEVs), the EV share in March was 10% and in the first quarter was 7.4%.
The big news in February’s top positions was of course the Tesla Model 3 landing with a bang, and jumping right up to the leadership position, but unlike what has happened (and is happening) in the USA, the blackhole effect of the Tesla Model 3 is not absorbing sales from other BEVs (well, maybe the Model S is the exception). Instead, it appears the Model 3 is pulling customers directly from competing PHEVs and gas/diesel models.
