New Zealand November 2019

Tesla Model 3 - Veni, vidi, vici

New Zealand is the hottest plugin market in the Southern Hemisphere, especially since the landing of the Tesla Model 3, with the Tesla sedan immediately becoming the Best Selling plugin, overcoming the once almighty Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV by over 100 units (or an extra 25% of deliveries).

This is an amazing feat for a model that only landed in July and by the end of September, it was already leading the ranking. "Veni, Vidi, Vici" indeed!...

Back to November, 231 new PEVs (2,4% PEV share) were sold in New Zealand, keeping the year result at 2,7% share, a significant improvement over the 1.4% of 2018.

Looking at the models ranking, if the podium positions seem already found, below them there is still a lot to decide in the last stage of the race, with the #4 Hyundai Ioniq Electric having to defend its position from the #5 Mini Countryman PHEV and #6 Toyota Prius PHEV, while the #10 Tesla Model X will have to deliver a strong December, if it wants to keep its ranking position safe from the recently landed Nissan Leaf, that registered 12 units last month, being just 3 units behind the Californian SUV. 

In the Manufacturers ranking, Tesla is leading the way, with 26% share, followed by Hyundai (22%), while the seven times Best Selling Manufacturer Mitsubishi is in Third Place (21%), looking to have a shot at recovering the Silver Medal in December. 

New Zealand August 2019

"3...2...1...It has landed! The Tesla Model 3 has landed!"

New Zealand is the hottest plugin market in the Southern Hemisphere and it is about to get even hotter, now that the Tesla Model 3 has landed, and the Tesla sedan has immediately become the new Best Seller in August, overcoming the once allmighty Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV (57 vs 53 units).

Last month, 273 new PEVs (a record 3,2% PEV share) were sold in New Zealand, pulling the year result to a record 2,3% share, a significant improvement over the 1.4% of 2018 and giving hope for year end result close to 3%.

But the good news do not end there, as BEVs frankly outpaced PHEVs (188 units, +158% vs 85 units, +35%), so the BEV tide is also rising in this market.

Looking at the models ranking, the top two best sellers remained ahead of the pack, with the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV opening up a little more its advantage over the runner-up Hyundai Kona EV. 

But the real news show up on the second half of the table, with the Tesla Model 3 jumping to #7, tied with another newcomer, the Jaguar i-Pace.

Speaking of new nameplates, the Audi e-Tron joined the Top 10, thanks to 30 deliveries, adding up to the 28 of July, allowing it to reach #10.

The Nissan Leaf re-entered the Kiwi market, with the Japanese hatchback registering 39 units in its first month on the market.

In the Manufacturers ranking, Hyundai is leading the way, with 28% share, while the seven times Best Selling Manufacturer Mitsubishi is in Second Place (21%), with Tesla (10%) in Third. 

New Zealand May 2019

Mini Countryman PHEV: Who said plugins had to be boring or nerdy?

Mini Countryman PHEV and VW e-Golf shine in hot market

Plugins remain a hot item in New Zealand, last month, 191 new PEVs (2,5% PEV share)were sold in New Zealand, pulling the year result at a record 2% share, a significant improvement over the 1.4% of 2018 and giving hope for 2,5% result by year end.

Looking at the models ranking, the leader Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV (33 units) lost some ground to the runner-up Hyundai Kona EV, that registered 6 more units (39, in total) than the Japanese SUV. 

One wonders how much higher would the Hyundai model be, if it wasn't battery constrained...

Elsewhere, two models shined in May, jumping positions in the ranking, the forever-young VW e-Golf hit a record 28 registrations last month, allowing it to reach a podium seat (#3), while the Mini Countryman PHEV came out of nowhere to 4th, thanks to 31 deliveries. 

Despite a short electric range and Premium pricing, the British crossover model is proving to be a success in several markets, which shows that a plugin can be successfull even if the EV specs are underwhelming.

Good month also for the Tesla brand, that registered 16 units last month, and with the Model 3 said to land in the coming months, expect Tesla's Kiwi stores to work overtime during the austral winter...

In the Manufacturers ranking, Hyundai is leading the way, with 28% share, while the seven times Best Selling Manufacturer Mitsubishi is in Second Place (22%), with Tesla (9%) in Third, being closely followed by Volkswagen (8%). 

New Zealand March 2019

Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV consolidates #1

Plugins remain a hot item in New Zealand, last month, 149 new PEVs were sold in New Zealand, keeping the year result at a record 1.8% share, a significant improvement over the 1.4% of 2018.

Looking at the models ranking, the leader Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV increased the advantage over the runner-up Hyundai Kona EV, by registering 13 more units (40, to be exact) than the Korean Crossover.

Last month the Tesla Model X profited from the last-month-of-quarter peak, to reach the podium.

Good month for the BMW Group, with the BMW i3 climbing to #7, while the Mini Countryman PHEV joined the ranking, in #8, tied with the Audi A3 e-Tron and Kia Niro EV.

In the Manufacturers ranking, Hyundai started the year as it ended 2018, being the surprise leader, with 27% share, while the seven times Best Selling Manufacturer Mitsubishi is in Second Place (26%), and Tesla (9%, up 1%) is Third. 

New Zealand February 2019

Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV recovers #1 from the Hyundai Kona BEV hands

Plugins are a hot item in New Zealand, last month, 200 units were sold in New Zealand, up 111% YoY, and pulling the year result to 329 units (+66%), while share wise, Fevruary recorded an impressive 2.6%, pulling the 2019 PEV Share to a record 1.8%, already a significant improvement over the 1.4% of 2018.

Good news also on the BEV/PHEV breakdown, as all-electrics have been recovering ground in this traditionally PHEV-friendly market, now holding 47% of the PEV market, so it looks 2019 could signal BEVs overcoming PHEVs for the first time since 2013.

Looking at the models ranking, the 2019 leadership changed hands, with the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV scoring its best result ever, with 65 units, allowing it to outrun the Hyundai Kona EV, but something tells me that this duel will have more chapters in the coming months...

Last month we had a nameplate coming back from the dead, with the Audi A3 e-Tron delivering 15 units, on what could be the last swan song stock clearance from the German maker.

Another big news was the landing of the Kia Niro EV, that was #4 last month, with 11 deliveries, a promising start for the Korean Crossover, that should be on its way for a Top 5 spot, if not a podium seat.

In the Manufacturers ranking, Hyundai started the year as it ended 2018, being the surprise leader, with 27% share, while the seven times Best Selling Manufacturer Mitsubishi is in Second Place (26%), and Tesla (8%) is Third. 

Markets Roundup December 2018

I. Big Markets

Let's see how the Big EV Markets fared in 2018:

China

* BAIC EC-Series #1 - Once again the winner, but in 2019 it will have more competition; 

* 1.1 million units - At some point i started to expect 1 million units, and as the year came to an end, not only it got there, but actually surpassed it!. And the Market Share reached 4.2%, a bit more than the 2%-something of the USA or Europe. 

USA

* Tesla Model 3 #1 - First win for the Californian, the first of a couple wins that the nameplate will have until the Model Y lands;

* 350.000 sales - Strong second half of the year, leading to a 2.1% share.

Europe

* Nissan Leaf #1 - The Japanese hatchback won its first title since 2013, but it shouldn't repeat the feat in 2019, as that trophy should go for the Tesla Model 3;

* 386.000 units - Sales continue to grow steadily, with the PEV share reaching 2.5%, with plug-in hybrids losing importance, with BEV's now outselling PHEV's. 

Japan

* Nissan Leaf #1 - Despite lack of real competition, the Nissan hatch did its part and won another title;

* 52.000 units - What can i say, sales have dropped 7% and the PEV share has dropped to 1%. Big disappointment.

Canada

* Tesla Model 3 #1 - The new darling in Canada. How could it be otherwise?

* 43.000 units - Strong, steady growth, with the market share ending at a record 2.2%.

South Korea

* Hyundai Kona EV #1 - Veni, vidi, vici. In only 8 months in the market, the Hyundai model surpassed everyone else, scoring even a new all-time record (11.000 units). The Kona EV is the EV Disruptor in Korea.

* 31.000 sales - A hot market, with doubling sales, and the market share now reaching 1.7%. How high will it reach in 2019? 3%? 4%? 5%? 

III. Other markets

A few words on smaller markets:

New Zealand - Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV turf, PEV share above 1% (1.4%);

Israel - Mercedes GLC350e was #1, market has beaten all records in 2018 and reached 1.4% share. Too many PHEVs, though;

Malaysia - BMW is king here, market is stable at around 1.2% share;

Australia - Slow growth, with the Tesla Model S winning the Best Seller title;

Brazil - Symbolic sales (less than 200 units) in such a large market, BYD e5 was the Best Seller;

Russia - Ditto for Russia (less than 300 units), Nissan Leaf stole the 2018 title from Tesla;

Mexico - Nissan Leaf wins again, in a falling market;

UAE - Tesla turf;

South Africa - BMW are the only ones doing something here;

Colombia - Fast growth is starting to move the needle (0.3% share), Renault Twizy is a popular choice, same as the BMW i3;

Taiwan - Stagnating market (less than 200 units), this time the local Luxgen LCS EV won #1;

India - Considering the size of the market, the 2.000 units registered could be considered symbolic. Tata and Mahindra are the only ones on the market, with compliance vehicles;

Thailand - Less than 1.000 units, the 2018 trophy was still for BMW, but Hyundai should steal the 2019 title.