Audi E-Tron jumps to #4
The German PEV passenger car market was up 17% to 6,767 registrations, with a seismic change happening in the fuels mix, with BEVs jumping (+68% YoY), while PHEVs continue sinking (-26%), allowing full electrics to outsell plugin hybrids by a large margin (69% share for BEVs).
With a stagnating mainstream market (-1% YoY), the PEV Share climbed to 2.6% in January, with BEVs alone hitting 1.8%.
Looking at January Best Sellers, you can see the good moment of all-electric models, with 8 BEVs in the Top 10, and the Renault Zoe leading the way, with 799 units, closely followed by the VW e-Golf (746) and the BMW i3 (703), with the Bimmer hot hatch scoring its best monthly result ever in its 5 year career. I guess the formula larger battery = higher sales gets proven once again...
But the (not so) surprise of the month was the Audi e-Tron, starting the year in the 4th Spot, with 407 registrations, a great result, considering official customer deliveries are only set to start in February, so expect these numbers to grow in the near future. Will we see the Audi SUV in a podium position soon?
One thing is certain, 2019 will see another close race for the leadership, with the 2018 trophy winner, the Renault Zoe, having to defend its title from the BMW i3, Tesla Model 3 and Audi e-Tron (maybe), while Volkswagen could surprise us with higher than expected deliveries of the eGolf / ID duo.
Below the top positions, the Hyundai Kona EV continues to ramp up deliveries, having registered a record 291 units, while the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV was by far the best selling plugin hybrid, thanks to 360 units.
Besides the Kona, the other Korean models also had a positive month, with 6(!) models in the Top 20, while the Volvo SUVs are also on the up in 2019, with the (relatively) smaller XC60 PHEV delivering a record 126 units, and the full-blown vessel XC90 PHEV registering 84 units, its best result in 2 years.
In the brands ranking, BMW (17%) is in the leadership, while Renault and Volkswagen are racing for the runner-up place, both with 12% share, comfortably ahead of the #4 Hyundai (9%).
Again, German numbers are disappointing. By now sales should be around 1 mill per year. For the mass market, EVs are simply too expensive and Germans are too thrifty to jump on it. Only premium EV cars have currently a chance on the market.
ReplyDeleteMaybe the VW ID will be the key that will open the market wide open. Let's see.
DeleteI checked the german used car market: Prices are incredible high:
Delete8000 Euro for a 2011 Tripplet - that car is 8 years old!
That tells me: germans are willing to pay...
What car do you own, Heinrich?
2019 will be in my view a banner year as the first cars produced at high economies of scale will hit the market. This will be very interesting.
DeleteJose, do you have also numbers for electric bike, scooters...? Do you know a website for this data? I have got the gut feeling that there is the biggest change going on here.
DeleteThe German EV market does not Need more premium cars. We need smaller and cheaper EV cars than ZOE and Golf with 200 km WLTP.
DeleteFrance has 2.7%, Germany 2.6%. Yes, in a certain way disappointing but on the other side there is reasons. People in bigger countries have naturally more range-anxiety than in smaller countries. Besides, the incentives are not really high in Germany. Car manufacturers are still heavily pushing for Diesel as they have the hope to catch a final wave before they have to shut down their factories where they produce the cylinders, valves, pistons, turbo-chargers and exhausts.
DeleteEven though etron is out and EQC and ID Neo are at the door step, but they still run a campaign against e-mobility.
Hey guys, buy the "clean Diesel". Fools!
Heinrich: The only website i know that follows regularly motorbikes is EAFO (eafo.eu).
DeleteSven: I agree, change in big countries is harder than in smaller ones.
DeleteFrom the published list:
ReplyDelete1st Renault Nissan Mitsubishi alliance: 1447 units
2nd BMW group: 1370 units
3rd Hyundai Kia group: 1172 units
4th Volkswagen group: 1153 units
5th Daimler: 409 units
Daimler is getting left behind, and yet, their management still have their heads buried in the (ICE) sand…
DeleteTo see who is ahead in the transition to electric driving, make the same list for BEV only.
DeleteJose - 'climbed to 2.6% in November' - really in November?
ReplyDeleteHeinrich- I don't think it is about 'thrifty', it's more about the reasonable ratio of price and usage.
Bug corrected, now says "January".
DeleteIf Zoe, e-Golf, i3 continue to post 700+ deliveries a month, the Model 3 does not even have a chance to get into the top 3. I would be surprised if it makes the top 5 especially if the e-tron continue to post good monthly numbers.
ReplyDeletewhy would 400 people buy an e-Tron when you can get a MS or MX for roughly the same price?
ReplyDeleteProbably 400 house wifes of Audi managers that drive their kids to school and to the horse riding classes in the afternoon ;-)
Be prepared for a flood of e-Tron registrations in the coming months…
DeleteI believe the e-Tron appeals to a somewhat different demographic, less tech-focused, that feel more comfortable buying from a brand they are already accustomed/customers.
The Spaniards have a saying: "There are so many tastes as there are colours", so i believe it is great to have different alternatives in the market, as it will mean more people will "Go EV", than if only Tesla existed on the market, because let's face it, Teslas are not for everyone out there.