Tesla Model Y was the best-selling model overall for the third time.
May 8, 2023 at 8:49 am ET
Sales of plug-in electric cars in China continue to rise, and March brought another solid result, indicating that electrification is becoming more mainstream.
In accordance with EV Volumes” Data, shared by Jose Pontes, showed some 563,334 plug-in electric passenger cars were registered in China in March, up 23 percent from a year ago.
More importantly, the market share of rechargeable cars improved to 34 percent, thus more than a third of the total volume.
Even more impressive is that fully electric cars account for 24 percent of all new registrations, so nearly one in four.
Results of the month:
- BEV: *398,000 and 24% fee
- PHEV: *166,000 and 10% fee
- Total: 563,334 (23% more year-on-year) and a 34% share
* estimated from market share
So far this year, more than 1.36 million new plug-in electric cars have been registered in China (up about 22% year-on-year), which is about 33% of the total volume.
Results to date:
- BEV: about *0.91 million and 22% share
- PHEV: about *0.46 million and 11% share
- Total: 1,368,677 (up 22% year-on-year) and a 33% share
* estimated from market share
For reference, in 2022, more than 5.92 million plug-in electric passenger cars were registered in China (up 83% from 2021).
One of the most interesting findings is that the list of the 10 most registered cars in China was dominated by plug-ins in April, with the Tesla Model Y at the top (for the third time, thanks to 54,937 registrations).
Below we can see four BYD models (Qin Plus family, Song family, Yuan Plus and Dolphin) and only two conventional models (Volkswagen Lavida #7 and Nissan Sylphy #8). That’s a big change when plug-ins, and specifically all-electric models, are selling better than internal combustion engine cars in China.
Top 10 plugins of the month:
- Tesla Model Y: 54,937
- BID Qin Plus (BEV + PHEV): 40,215
- BYD Song Plus (BEV + PHEV): 40,114
- BYD Yuan Plus (aka Atto 3) BEV: 27,907
- WORLD of dolphins: 27,687
- GAC Aion S: 26,392
- Wuling Hong Kong MINI EV: 23,159
- Tesla Model 3: 21,726
- WORLD Han (BEV + PHEV): 13,834
- GAC Aion Y: 13,267
After the first three months, the BYD Song Plus remains at the top with a big lead over other models, but it is no longer the best seller.
Top 10 plugins of the year to date:
- BYD Song Plus (BEV + PHEV): 142,379
- Tesla Model Y: 94,647
- BID Qin Plus (BEV + PHEV): 79,239
- BYD Yuan Plus (aka Atto 3) BEV: 72,683
- Wuling Hong Kong MINI EV: 69,842
- WORLD of dolphins: 67,658
- GAC Aion S: 48,310
- Tesla Model 3: 42,782
- WORLD Han (BEV + PHEV): 38,314
- BID Tang (BEV + PHEV): 32,873
* BEV and PHEV versions of the same models were counted together at the source.
BYD is the most popular auto brand and group in China, although after March, its lead narrowed slightly. Meanwhile, Tesla surged and is now in second place.
Top Brands by Share in Plugin Segment YTD:
- BYD: 36.4%
- Tesla: 10.0%
- SAIC-GM-Wuling: 5.9%
- GAC I: 5.9%
- Changan: 4.5%
- Li Auto: 3.9%
Major car groups by share in the connector segment since the year:
- BYD: 38.1%
including the Denza brand - Tesla: 10.0%
- SAIC: 7.8%
including the SAIC-GM-Wuling joint venture (between SAIC, GM and Liuzhou Wuling Motors) - GAC: 6.1%
- Geely-Volvo: 5.0%
- Changan: 4.8%
