While the EU car market as a whole remained in the red in December (-4% compared to the same month last year), plug-in cars (hybrids and electric cars) experienced a real boom: a record 281 thousand cars were sold (+264% compared to December 2019). For comparison: in November, 115 thousand of these cars were sold less, and this was a record.
As a result of these impressive sales, the share of all connected cars (PEV) in December rose to 23%, and that of pure electric vehicles (BEV) – to 14%. Overall, PEV sales for the full year of 2020 exceeded 1 million units, which is 142% more than in 2019. And it looks like sales will now skyrocket. In total, the share of PEV in 2020 on the EU market remained 11% (if we take into account only BEV – 6.2%), which is significantly higher than 3.6% in 2019 (2.2% BEV). According to the results of 2021, the share of PEV in the EU could easily reach 40%.
EU plug-in car sales rankings in December
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The growth in popularity of electric cars in December was 223% compared with a year ago (168,912 units), but hybrids (PHEV) added more – 347% (112,260 units). Although in general, according to the final indicators of 2020, hybrids in the EU were slightly inferior to electric cars (46% against 54%), already in 2021 they can easily get ahead.
The Volkswagen ID.3 became the bestseller in December – the car surpassed the Tesla Model 3 in the month of its launch and set a new record for electric cars. Also last month, the fresh Renault Captur PHEV model entered the top five, and for the first time two PEVs from Renault entered the top five. Also for the first time, a French brand won the title of the best-selling hybrid.
EU plug-in car sales rankings for 2020 overall
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So, the top three are represented by the following models:
- Volkswagen ID.3 – The long-awaited German electric car has finally become available to buyers in large quantities. 28 108 of these cars were delivered to the market. The first electric vehicle on the MEB platform had the greatest success in Germany (7144), the Netherlands (6083) and the United Kingdom (3200), Norway (2303), France (2550) and Sweden (2564). VW’s new brainchild looks set to become one of the most popular plug-in cars in the EU, alongside the Tesla Model 3 and Renault Zoe. Unless, of course, the new VW ID.4 turns out to be more popular than the younger model.
- Tesla Model 3 – The 2019 best-selling electric car in Europe in December 2019 sold a record 24,664 units. This would normally provide 1 seat. The main sales markets were Great Britain (5700 deliveries), Norway (4232) and Germany (3293 units), Switzerland (1560) and Denmark (1460). Model 3 will remain in the top three for a long time if the new Tesla Model Y does not begin to outshine its younger brother.
- Renault Zoe – despite the 3rd place, December was another excellent month for the French electric car: 16 322 deliveries were ensured by the already well-established production and the absence of a deficit even at peak demand. Last month, Zoe’s main markets were France (5978 units), Germany (5349 units) and Italy (1153 units). Zoe will continue to be among the leaders if the new Renault Captur PHEV (ranked 5th in December with 6,135 units sold) does not hurt sales of its younger sibling.
Among other leaders, we can mention the electric crossover Hyundai Kona EV (4th place, 11,340 cars sold), the electric car Nissan Leaf (7th place, 5424 units). Newcomers were the Fiat 500e in 10th and VW ID.4 in 11th.
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