New Zealand September 2018

Hyundai Kona BEV on the rise

Plugins are a hot item in New Zealand, last month, 167 units were sold in New Zealand, up 86% YoY, and pulling the year result to 1,152 units, placing the 2018 PEV Share at a record 1.5%, while the September share was even better, hitting 1.8%.

Looking at the models ranking, the 2018 leadership is in the hands wheels of the usual Best Seller, the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV, that thanks to the arrival of the revised MY 2019 version, scored its best result ever in this market, with 54 deliveries (And second best performance for a single model, only behind the 83 units achieved by the Hyundai Ioniq Electric, in October '17).

Last month result allowed the Japanese SUV to gain a significant advantage over the #2 Hyundai Ioniq Electric, while the last place of the podium has two Teslas and the VW e-Golf running for it, with the Model X being the new Bronze bearer, after surpassing the German nameplate last month.

But lately, the big news was the landing of the Hyundai Kona BEV, that was #4 last month, with 15 deliveries, while YTD it is already #10, but at this pace it should end at least in Seventh.

Elsewhere, the Audi A3 e-Tron had a good month, delivering 10 units, its best result in 10 months, while we salute a new face here, with the LDV Maxus EV80 electric van reaching the Top 20, in #18. 

In the Manufacturers ranking, Hyundai is the surprise leader, with 24% share, placing three models in the Top 10, while the seven times Best Selling Manufacturer Mitsubishi is in Second Place (20%), and Tesla (18%) is Third, while Volkswagen (9%) is a distant Fourth. 

Global Top 5 - Mid Game Bet

1. Tesla Model 3 - 82k

2. Nissan Leaf - 65k

3. BAIC EC-Series - 51k

4. Tesla Model S - 37k

5. BYD Qin PHEV or Toyota Prius PHEV - 35k

Germany September 2018

BMW 












BMW Shines

The German PEV passenger car market was down 12% in September, to 4,626 registrations, with PHEVs stumbling 24% YoY, no doubt due to the Summer pre-WLTP sales rush, but BEVs kept on growing (+5%), allowing full electrics to sell at the same level as PHEVs.

Year to date, all-electrics are still 1,000 units below PHEVs, with BEVs holding 0.9% share, while plug-in hybrids remained stable at 1%, making the total PEV share stable at 1.9%.

Looking at the fuels mix, Diesel was down 44%(!), representing 29% of the total market, while Gasoline (-25%) dropped less than the total market (-31%), which wasn't the case of LPG (-48%) or CNG (-51%), that were also heavily hit by the new rules.

Looking at September Best Sellers, BMW had another good month, placing two models in the podium, with the hot selling 225xe Active Tourer staying on top, with 752 deliveries, its third fourth record performance in a row. Who said family-friendly MPVs weren't hip anymore? Now imagine if it had a decent electric range...

The VW e-Golf was second, thanks to 432 deliveries, while the BMW i3 was Third, with 420 registrations.

But the surprise of the month was the revised Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV, that with 346 deliveries (best result in 18 months), was #4 last month, becoming the model first Top 5 presence in over a year. Will we see it here more often?

Pl	Model	Sales
1	BMW 225xe A. Tourer	752
2	VW e-Golf	432
3	BMW i3	420
4	Mit. Outlander PHEV	346
5	Renault Zoe	328

Over the years, the German PEV market became known for its changes and surprises, and September had a number of interesting developments, the main news were the continuous rise and rise of the BMW 225xe Active Tourer, now in #4, surpassing the Smart Fortwo ED and the Kia Soul EV in just one month. 

The BMW nameplate is now just 236 units below the leader Renault Zoe, so we might see the German MPV reach the leadership already next month, which would be a first for the hot selling nameplate. 

Other changes were the #8 Smart Forfour ED surpassing the VW Golf GTE, while the Nissan Leaf was up one position, to #12, thanks to 275 registrations, its best result in the last 5 months, and with the #10 Audi A3 e-Tron only 109 units ahead, the Japanese hatchback is now running for a Top 10 position.

The Mercedes GLC350e rose to #14, while the BMW 530e was also up one position to #17, thanks to a Personal Best result of 228 registrations, underlining the good moment of the BMW lineup.

There is a new model in the Top 20, with the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV showing up in #16, but below this ranking, there is a rising star preparing to shine in 2019, with the Hyundai Kona BEV having its first full deliveries month in September, with 91 units.

In the brands ranking, BMW (18%) is in the leadership, ahead of Volkswagen (16%) while the #3 Smart (11%) has the competition (Mercedes, Renault and Kia, all with 8%) further behind. 

Source: KBA

Canada September 2018

Back to Earth

After an historic June, September registered 4,400 units, the second best month sharewise, with 2.5% in September, the disruptive force of the Tesla Model 3 was felt once again, with the Tesla midsizer reaching last month leadership. Yet, it was only the second Best Selling Monthly title won by the Californian in its five months career in Canada, but more on that below... 

Looking at the PEV share, thanks the the aforementioned 2.5% performance (only below the historic 3.2% of June), the 2018 share grew to new heights, now at 2.2%.

As previously said, after the June lanslide win, September was only the second time that the Tesla Model 3 was Best Seller, which could mean that Tesla is prioritizing the US market, but could also be the case that the Model 3 demand North of the Border is not so overwhelming as in its home market.

Considering that the Tesla nameplate benefits from the home advantage in US soil, its Canada career could foretell the midsizer success overseas, like it was the case of the Model S and X before it.

Due to this irregular behavior, the Tesla Model 3 is only Third in the PEV ranking, below the leader Nissan Leaf (605 units last month, third best result ever) and the popular Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV.  

The #4 Chevrolet Volt had its worst result in 31 months, with only 136 units, which can only result from the MY 2019 transition change. 

Elsewhere, the VW e-Golf climbed one position to #11, while the BMW i3 was up to #17.

Regarding the manufacturers podium, Tesla (19%) is the new leader, dropping the chronical leader Chevrolet (16%) to Second Place, while Nissan and Mitsubishi (both with 13%) are running for Third.

Tesla Model 3 vs The Others 

Pl	Model	2018
1	Mercedes C-Class	7,934
2	BMW 3-Series	4,959
3	Audi A4	4,556
4 5	Tesla Model 3 Audi A5	4,325 3,667

Due to the irregular career, and despite two class wins (June and September), the Tesla Model 3 hasn't yet reached the class podium, maintaining the Tesla Model 3 in Fourth Place on the 2018 ranking, although the Californian could surpass the Audi and BMW models soon. 

As for the Mercedes C-Class, things are trickier, as the Merc usually registers some 1,000 units/month performances, so i guess the Model 3 will only be able to outsell it next year, once the Short Range version is effectively on the roads.

Another interesting fact is that, with the exception of the Audi A5, the other ICE models are having sales drops, so the Model 3, added to the SUV craze, is reshaping the Midsize Luxury Car market. 

Tesla Model S vs The Others 

Pl	Model	2018
1	Mercedes E & CLS-Class	2,582
2	BMW 5-Series	2,012
3	Tesla Model S	788
4 5	Mercedes S-Class Porsche Panamera	783 676

Unlike its younger sibling, the Model S is clockwork predictable, two slow selling months followed by a hot selling one, allows it to be Third in its class since...Well, since it landed in Canada. 

And yet, the distance it used to had regarding the competition behind it was much more significant, so we could see it slide down in the coming future.

And unlike in the midsize segment, the Model S competition is growing YoY, with the Porsche Panamera in particular going up 39% regarding last year.

A final note for the Tesla Model X, despite now selling above its Model S sibling, with 1,224 deliveries so far this year, the Sports SUV is just #7 in its class, well behind the leader Mercedes GLE (5,793 units).