World Top 10 April 2015

"Yeah, it's pretty clear, I ain't no German Car
But I can plug-in, plug-in, like I'm supposed to do"

"Because it's all about that BYD, BYD, no Tesla"

Models -  BYD Qin nears Podium Territory

Some 32.000 plug-ins were sold last month, which represents a 45% increase regarding the same month last year, which shows that the global EV Market is alive and well, despite a sales slowdown in North America and even a downturn in Japan.

The top position went as usual for the Nissan Leaf, but with only 3.4k units, sales are down regarding April '14 by 12%, its market share is dwindling (Down another point to 14%) and the nearest competitors are getting closer...

...Among them is the BYD Qin, it was #3 last month, only 212 units behind the media-friendly Tesla Model S runner-up, with an incredible records streak that has been happening since its debut, back in December '13, the chinese EV is now entering the more rarified atmosphere of the podium seats, if the records trend continues, it wouldn't be surprising to see the Qin get to the podium and even make an attempt at a Monthly Leader Trophy in the near future.

Moving on, the YTD ranking shows two major changes, with two new attendants in the bottom positions, the chinese Zotye E20 jumped to #9, while the surprising Ford C-Max Energi had its best result ever (1.273 units), returning to the Top 10 after a seven month hiatus.  

A final reference to the #7 Renault Zoe, it was #5 last month (1.743 units) and came closer to the #6 VW e-Golf, with less than 200 units separating them, May might see the french car surpass VW's Pride and Joy.

Pl	WORLD	Apr.	YTD	%	'14Pl
1	Nissan Leaf	3.417	16.853	14	1
2	Tesla Model S	2.837	12.690	10	3
3	Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV	2.185	12.034	10	2
4 5 6	BYD Qin BMW i3 Volkswagen e-Golf	2.625 1.327 1.331	8.944 6.626 4.992	7 5 4	7 6 21
7	Renault Zoe	1.743	4.796	4	9
8	Chevrolet Volt (1)	1.025	3.219	3	4
9	Zotye E20	1.131	3.058	3	13
10	Ford C-Max Energi	1.273	2.938	2	11
	TOTAL	32.252	122.070

Manufacturers -  BYD Almost #1

With no actual changes in the YTD ranking, the April results showed a stronger than ever BYD, almost outgunning (Only 72 units behind) the perennial leader Nissan.

Considering the success of the Qin and e6, as well as the new models blitz  (Three new PHEV SUV's!) prepared for this year by BYD, it won't be surprising if the chinese carmaker collects a couple of Monthly Best Seller trophies until the end of this year and becomes a strong candidate for #1 in 2016. 

Now, all they need is a Gigafactory of their own...

Pl	WORLD	Apr.	YTD	%	'14Pl
1	Nissan	3.718	18.199	15	1
2	Mitsubishi	2.541	13.532	11	2
3	Tesla	2.837	12.690	10	3
4	BYD	3.646	10.933	9	7
5 6 7	Volkswagen BMW Renault	2.331 1.685 2.163	8.755 8.113 6.489	7 7 5	11 9 8
8	Ford	2.154	6.147	5	5
9	Zotye	1.578	5.034	4	13
10	Chevrolet	1.950	4.519	4	6

(1) - Includes Holden Volt, Opel and Vauxhall Ampera;