Hungary October 2018 (Draft)

Nissan Leaf Superstar

The Hungarian PEV Market was a sort of "Moby Dick", as it was hard to get detailed data on a model level, but now we have some information in this market, which the most important in Eastern Europe, translated in a PEV Share of 1.3%, with 62% of that share belonging to BEVs.

The Nissan Leaf is an undeniable success in this market, having been the Best Selling model since 2013(!), with the Japanese hatchback being responsible for one third of all plugins in the country, which says a lot about the work done by the local importer.

Other important players are Volkswagen (21% share) and BMW (18%), with the first using both the e-Golf and e-Up! to rack up sales, while the second has the i3 as its bread and butter model.. 

Pl	Hungary	Oct.	YTD	%	'17Pl
1 2	Nissan Leaf VW e-Golf	75 7	497 141	32 9	1 9
3	BMW i3	13	128	8	3
4	Kia Niro PHEV	6	90	6	20
5	VW e-Up! Others	39	80 623	5 40	2
TOTAL		140	1.559	100

Iceland October 2018

27% Share!!!

Sales are growing moderately in Iceland (+22%) this year, but because the mainstream market is dropping significantly (13% this year, and over 20% in October), the PEV shares are jumping through the roof, with October hitting an amazing 27% PEV share and the 2018 now at 18%.

Considering that the other advanced EV market, Norway, is experiencing a similar behavior, with moderate PEV growth (+21% YoY) and a sales drop in the mainstream auto market (-5%), we are starting to see a trend, that can be replicated in other markets, as once markets hit some 15% market share, plugin sales slow down to 20-30% growth rates, while at the same time, the mainstream market starts to shrink, as regular buyers realize that fossil fueled vehicles are becoming dinosaurs.

While we do not have the models breakdown of the mainstream market, we can give you some revealing statistics on how the 27% share is impacting the mainstream market, if the best selling brand in October, Toyota, has a small input from plugins (4 units out of 125), the Second Best Selling Brand, Volkswagen, had 44% of all its sales coming from PEVs, while the Third, Nissan, had 74% of all its sales coming from electric vehicles!

Doing an estimate of the 3 Best Selling Vehicles last month, i would say it might have been something like this:

#1 - Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV - 66 units;
#2 - Nissan Leaf - 47 units;
#3 - Toyota Yaris - 44 units.

As proven by what has been showed above, Toyota's future looks bleak, as their hybrid models are losing the race to plugins, and PEVs are a residual part of the brand fuels mix.

But back at the PEV models ranking, the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV continues as strong as ever, having already surpassed last year record (884 units), and with two months still to go, it looks that we will see it reach some 1.000 units in 2018, which would be a first for any model in this market.

In the remaining podium positions, the #3 Nissan Leaf is getting closer to the Volvo XC90 PHEV Silver medal, with the Japanese hatchback confirming its status as the best selling BEV.

The VW e-Golf delivered 26 units last month, its best performance ever, allowing it to reach the Fifth Spot, switching places with its VW Golf GTE sibling, which is a good picture to show the recent uptick of BEVs in this market, that represented 35% of all plugins in October, 4% more than the 31% average of 2018.

Elsewhere, the Audi A3 e-Tron is the new #8, while the Renault Zoe recovered the #14 spot from the Hyundai Ioniq Electric, becoming the new Bronze medalist in the BEV ranking.

In the brands ranking, Mitsubishi (29%) is  in the leadership, followed by the  #2 Volvo (17%), while the #3 Volkswagen (12%) is keeping a close eye on the #4 Nissan (9%).

Poland October 2018 (Draft)

Nissan Leaf #1

Poland is by far the largest automotive market in Eastern Europe, with over 500.000 units on a yearly basis, but regarding plugins, it is only #2, as the smaller Hungary (only 120k/year) is currently taking the lead, with some 1.400 units, but nevertheless, at some 1.000 units sold in the first 10 months of 2018, up 23% YoY, it is still a significant market, despite its PEV Share being just 0.2%.

Looking at the models ranking, after winning the Best Seller trophy in 2013 and 2017, the Nissan Leaf is once again in the lead, almost doubling the registrations of the Second Placed BMW i3, and with a waiting list still to be satisfied, expect the Japanese Hatchback to renew the Best Seller title easily.

Elsewhere, the Kia Niro PHEV continues in Third Place, and should stay there by year end, now that the BMW i3 increased its lead to 25 units.

The Manufacturers trophy is being hardly fought, with BMW and Nissan, both with 23% share, being separated by just 2 units, to the profit of the German carmaker. 

In Third we have another interesting race, as Volvo, with 11%, tries to resist to the #4 Kia rise, with 10% share.

Pl	Poland	Oct.	2018	%	'17Pl
1 2 3	Nissan Leaf BMW i3 Kia Niro PHEV e)	15 29 12	222 126 101	22 12 10	1 2 17
4 5	Volvo XC60 PHEV e) BMW 225xe AT e)	2 6	69 55	7 5	12 5
	Others	70	317	44
	TOTAL	88	1.017	100

Netherlands October 2018

Boatloads of i-Pace are now being delivered here 

Jaguar i-Pace (finally) steps up the pace

October had 2,058 plugin registrations, up 147% YoY, which translates in a PEV Share of 6.8%, and pulls the year to date count to 17,035 units, with the 2018 PEV share now growing to 4.3%.

This good market performance was the result of several good individual results, starting with the Best Seller of the Month, the Nissan Leaf, that registered 360 units, the nameplate best result in its 7 year career in Dutch lands, while the #2 Tesla Model S delivered 257 units, its best first-month-of-quarter result ever, which is particularly impressive, as by now it should have been feeling the long shadow of the Model 3. Apparently it isn't, so we can expect another 1,000-plus performance next December.

Interestingly, the 91 Tesla Model X deliveries also represented the nameplate best first-month-of-quarter performance here, so we can expect at least some 600 deliveries in December for the Sports-Minivan-SUV, which could make Tesla reach 2,000 deliveries in one month. And the Model 3 is still to cross the Atlantic...

Of course, maybe the higher taxation of expensive BEVs next year might have something to do with it, but it's not Tesla fault if others aren't in place to profit from the current sales fever...Which takes us to the Jaguar i-Pace.

The British SUV has finally surpassed its initial production hell constraints and is now fulfilling against the clock the thousands of orders it has in this market, having delivered 209 units last month, which should be just the sample of what will happen in December (do i hear 1,000-plus deliveries?).

One thing is certain, with Tesla and Jaguar (and others?) going at full speed next December, the BEV Share should hit historic levels in December, maybe even crossing into two digits… 

Elsewhere, the #3 VW e-Golf also shined, by delivering 238 units, its best result since January, while the BMW i3 closed the Top 5, with 175 registrations, the nameplate best result since 2015.

Pl	Model	Sales
1	Nissan Leaf	360
2	Tesla Model S	257
3	VW e-Golf	238
4	Jaguar i-Pace	209
5	BMW i3	175

Looking at the 2018 ranking, while the Top 6 positions remained the same, the Renault Zoe recovered (for good?) the #7 spot from the hands wheels of the Opel Ampera-e (Euro-spec Chevrolet Bolt), while the other change on the Top 10 was the #9 Volvo XC60 PHEV surpassing the Porsche Panamera PHEV, thanks to a record 119 deliveries, allowing it to be the new Best Selling PHEV. Should the Swedish midsize SUV win the category this year, it will succeed in the PHEV throne to its larger sibling, the XC90 PHEV, that won the 2017 title. 

Just outside the Top 10, we have three models on the rise, with the Jaguar i-Pace joining the ranking in #11, and the British SUV is now going after a Top 5 spot, while Hyundai is hoping to get more Kona EV units to reach at least #11 this year, and the 3 times Best Seller (2013; '14; '15) Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV rose two positions to #13, thanks to 84 deliveries, the model best result in 22 months.

In the manufacturers ranking, Tesla (33%, down 6%) is the undisputed leader, with Nissan (14%) hanging on in Second Place, while the race for Third Spot has now Volkswagen (10%, up 1%) on the podium, ahead of BMW and Hyundai (9%).

Source: RAI Vereniging