As electric vehicles (EVs) continue to populate the roads more and more, we’re also beginning to witness a global entry into new territory – the auto market’s switch, at large, to zero-emissions vehicles.
According to EV Sales, Europe’s top-selling EV in December 2020 was the Volkswagen ID.3, which delivered a total of 28,108 units. This is in comparison with the also-electric Tesla Model 3, which was the month’s second-best EV seller, delivering a record 24,664 units total.
Europe is also further ahead in terms of EV share: it increased from 3,3% 2019 to 10,2% in 2020 (BEVs+PHEVs); in China 5,5 % in 2020.
"Germany becomes the 2nd largest EV Market after China"
says https://t.co/xGA7equQGi https://t.co/BmOPR2vQvL
— Clean Energy Wire (@cleanenergywire) January 20, 2021
Immediately following the ID.3 and Model 3 were the Renault Zoe, the Hyundai Kona EV, and the Renault Captur Pluging Hybrid EV (PHEV). These remaining top 5 sellers delivered a total of 16,322 units, 11,340 units, and 6,135 units, respectively.
December’s European plugin market saw a record 281,000 registrations, equating to an impressive 264% increase year-over-year – and even outdoing November’s 198% YoY increase.
The EV market as a whole also grew significantly in 2020, with December plugins representing 23% of the total auto market share, and battery electric vehicles (BEVs) making up 14% of the total market share.
Photo: EV Sales
For the whole of 2020, the PHEV share landed at 11% of the market, compared to just 3.6% in 2019. Similarly, the BEV market made up 6.2% of the year’s market, compared to just 2.2% in the previous year.
Recently, Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess joined Twitter and in one of his first tweets, threw shade at Tesla and Elon Musk, noting the ID.3 “have won the first markets in Europe.”
Hello @Twitter! I’m here to make an impact with @VWGroup, especially on political issues. And, of course, to get some of your market shares, @elonmusk – after all, our ID.3 and e-tron have won the first markets in Europe. Looking forward to productive discussions!
— Herbert Diess (@Herbert_Diess) January 20, 2021
Tesla recently lowered the price of the Model 3 in some European nations to become more competitive.
At any rate, 2021 is shaping up to be an exciting one, and we may even witness history in the making as the world prepares to embrace EVs for good.
