Germany May 2020

Audi A3 PHEV: "OLD?!?!? Who's OLD?!?!"

Audi shines in transitional month

With the German slowly recovering from the pandemic-related lockdown, dropping just 50% YoY in May, the local plugin market stepped up the growth pace last month, having registered 12,333 units, up 56% YoY, mostly thanks to PHEVs, that jumped an amazing 107%(!), with last month plugin share reaching 7.3% (3.3% BEV), keeping the yearly tally at 7.6% (3.7% BEV). 

With the recent incentive changes, it is expected that the German plugin market to return to warp speed soon, although much due to increased sales of plugin hybrids that are already the majority of PEV sales this year (48% BEV vs 52% PHEV), and they should increase their lead throughout the summer, at least until a certain VW ID.3 lands in September...But more on that later.

PHEVs or not, the truth is that thanks to the incentives boost, we could reach the 10% milestone already this year, something that would make 2021 a very interesting year to follow...(wink, wink, disruption, wink, wink)

Back at last month Best Sellers, in May the VW e-Golf repeated the top spot, with the German brand milking its e-Golf hatchback to the last drop, thanks to generous discounts, so it seems the veteran model is set to end its career on a high note.

Another veteran, the Audi A3 PHEV, is benefitting from a second spring, managing to win its first podium position in years, thanks to a surprising record of 732 registrations, an amazing feat for a model that is supposed to be on its last months...Talk about leaving with a bang!

In fact, Audi can celebrate its May performance, as it placed 3 models in the Top 6 spots, with the A3 PHEV in 3rd, the e-Tron BEV in 4th, and the Q5 PHEV in 5th, tied with the Mercedes E300e/de. Not bad, Audi, not bad indeed...

Pl	Model	Sales
1	VW e-Golf	1,153
2	Renault Zoe	896
3	Audi A3 PHEV	732
4	Audi e-Tron	583
5 5	Audi Q5 PHEV Mercedes E300e/de	437 437

Regarding the 2020 table, the podium positions remained the same, with each model consolidating its position, and they should stay the same until September, when a certain VW ID.3 delivers some 8,000 units (wild guess) at once, landing immediately on (or close to) the podium, kicking out its predecessor from the throne during the following months, while also in September, the Tesla Model 3 will benefit from the end-of-quarter peak to try and displace the Renault Zoe from the podium, stealing at the same time the Best Selling Foreigner title from the French hatchback.

The PHEV race will be also interesting to see, if the leader is still the last year winner  Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV, the Japanese SUV has been losing gas charge, and now has the #5 VW Passat GTE just 14 units behind, but the Volkswagen midsizer might not enjoy the plugin hybrid throne for long, as the rising Audi A3 PHEV, up 3 spots last month, to #7, is currently outpacing the competition, although one wonders for how long, as the Audi hatchback is on the last legs of its 6-year career.

With all this, even the #8 Mercedes E300e/de family have a shot at winning the PHEV category, especially now that thanks to the new incentives, the PHEV versions will become even more price-competitive regarding their ICE siblings, so Mercedes better find an extra supply of batteries for the E300, because they will surely need them...

Speaking of the big Merc, in the Luxury category, the Audi e-Tron surpassed it, reaching the 6th position and becoming the new Top Dog in this (high end) race, and the good news for Audi haven't stopped there, as its Q5 PHEV SUV was up also, in this case one position, to #12.

But it wasn't only Audi that shined, because the 371 registrations of the #14 Hyundai Kona EV, a new year best, also deserve a mention, while the Smart Fortwo EV and the Volvo S/V60 PHEV twins climbed a spot in the table, with the tiny two.seater now at #15, while the Swedes are now #16.

We have two new entries at the bottom of the table, both from BMW, that added its X3 PHEV (385 units in May, new record) in #19, and the bigger X5 PHEV (280 units) in #20, making 4 BMWs in the Top 20.

Outside the Top 20, a reference to the Ford Kuga PHEV, that registered a record 422 units last month, a new record, and should help it reach a Top 20 position soon, which would be a first for the Dearborn maker, and a good omen for the future Mach-E EV.

In the brands ranking, Volkswagen (16%) leads the way, Audi (11%, up 2%) profited from the good performance in May to return to the runner-up spot, displacing BMW (10%) to the last place of the podium, while the #4 Mercedes (8%) and #5 Renault (7%, down 1%) are running behind.