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The electric vehicle market grew by 18% in 2020 over 7 months. But the novelties are so numerous that the established models are losing feathers.
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Something has changed with the electric car. A few years ago, when you got behind the wheel of an electric vehicle like the BMW i3 or a Tesla Model S, all eyes were on you: the audience was very curious. Today, after spending a few hours behind the wheel of the all-new Volkswagen ID.3, we realize that this is already less the case.
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There are some people who stop and look at a vehicle that indicates in traffic, but the electric and electrified car is becoming more and more common of consumers. Volkswagen thinks its ID.3 will be its Golf of tomorrow and put 33 billion euros for the development of electric cars.
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The result is there, with a very functional car. The version we are taking in hand has 400 kilometers of real autonomy on the clock. Autonomy close to reality after a day of driving. It is the first edition which will roam the Belgian streets from the start of the school year.
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At the same time, the configurator will be open for standard orders. The car experienced a few hiccups at startup in its software development, the Covid-19 also delayed the schedule a little. But there it is arrival in concession, the ID.3, eagerly awaited by the teams. Already, Volkswagen boss Herbert Diess had shown off during his family vacation with the vehicle across Europe. The timing seems right. In a Belgian new vehicle market hard hit by the coronavirus in 2020 (-26%), the electric vehicle market is growing by 18%.
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Year 1 of the electric car
We wrote at the beginning of the year: 2020 was to become the turning point for the electric car. It was the will of the majority of car manufacturers pushed behind the back by European legislation and the risk of fines in case of average CO2 too high.
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However, as in any automotive segment, it is not not easy to keep your place in the electric vehicle. The Belgian market is not registering the growth necessary for everyone to benefit from it at the same time. One novelty seems, in fact, to chase away another.
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The coronavirus crisis and activity at a standstill for 3 months: these are the people in charge … Because can we really talk about good growth in the segment? of the electric vehicle while it only increases by around 1,000 units in Belgium over 7 months?
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This is just the beginning: other iconic cars are still expected in their electric version, such as the Fiat 500.
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DS3, Honda E, MG ZS, Electric Mini, Opel Corsa, Peugeot 2008, Peugeot 208, Polestar 2, Porsche Taycan, the new Renault Zoé, Seat Mii or Skoda e-Citigo are all new electric models that we find this year on the market. And that’s just the start: other iconic cars are still expected in their electric version, like the Fiat 500.
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Increased competition
Faced with this modest increase, some well-installed models see their registrations decrease. This is for example the case of the Nissan Leaf whose registrations over 7 months are barely 246 units against 560 in 2019 over the same period.
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Even the iconic Tesla Model 3 is down with 1,194 registrations over 7 months, against 1,521 last year. With an overall drop of 15% in registrations, Tesla nevertheless remains above the trend of the automotive market as a whole.
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Electrification is progressing very well if we look at the “plug-in” hybrids that are recharged from the mains.
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However, it would be wrong to think that electrification is already leveling off in sales. In fact, it is progressing very well if we look at the “plug-in” hybrids that are recharged on the mains. There, the deal is quite different. “Hybrids with plug” were registered 11,686 times over 7 months, against 4,173 last year: an increase of 180%!
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“Some customers still prefer the hybrid as an intermediate step between the heat engine and the electric motor”, abounds Sofie Luyckx, spokesperson for Audi. In this segment, Volvo and BMW’s results in this respect are impressive. Volvo has a total of 2,386 “plug-in hybrids” registrations over 7 months. BMW counts 3,629 registrations. For Volvo it is twice as good as last year and for BMW it is 3.5 times better.
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One in four cars registered with Volvo can be recharged with a plug even before the first sale of an electric vehicle in Belgium. Obviously, taxation is never far away. The majority of hybrids that work have a battery large enough to remain 100% deductible.
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More this trend clearly leads to another. The Belgian gets into the habit of plugging in his vehicle. The Volkswagen ID.3 has, in this respect, a great card to play.
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