Global sales of battery electric vehicles (BEV) and plug-in hybrids (PHEV) rose 20% versus a year ago as strong growth in North America and China offset lower sales in Europe, according to a recent news report by reuters. The sales of Battery electric vehicles (BEV) & Plug-in hybrid (PHEV) rose from 1.1 million in November 2022 to 1.4 million this year. China posted a 25% increase in sales and were up 43% in the United States and Canada, while Europe saw sales drop 3% versus the same month in 2022.
After years of accelerating growth, some automakers fear that electric car sales in Europe and elsewhere could be heading for slowing demand as EV drivers wait for better, cheaper models that are one to two years down the road. The reduction in sales in Europe can also be attributed to reduction of subsidies by countries like Germany & France. The market & policies are getting restructured to shift favour European-made electric cars over Chinese ones. The sales in Europe should remain strong because automakers will still need to meet emissions targets heading into 2025.
Back in August 2023, the sales of BEV’s & PHEV’s were up 45% in August 2023 compared to August 2022, rising to 1,238,00 units. On half-yearly basis, six million new EVs — 427 million Battery Electric Vehicles (BEV) and 176 million Plug-in Hybrids (PHEV) — were delivered during the first half of 2023, an increase of 40%. Overall, according to Kelley Blue Book, electric vehicle (EV) sales are increasing rapidly: they jumped 65 percent year-over-year to over 800,000 EVs sold in 2022.
The uptake of EVs is predicted to continue the trend of steep incline as incentives for consumer uptake and legislation around sustainability and emissions increase. New geography areas such as Indonesia, Thailand, Turkey, Australia and Brazil are witnessing an accelerated adoption. Let’s now look at the top most sold electric cars of 2023.
The Most Popular Electric Cars of 2023
| S No | Electric Car | Country |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Tesla Model Y | USA |
| 2. | Tesla Model 3 | USA |
| 3. | BYD Song Pro/Plus | China |
| 4. | BYD Atto 3 / Yuan Plus | China |
| 5. | BYD Dolphin | China |
| 6. | GAC Aion S | China |
| 7. | Wuling HongGuang Mini EV | China |
| 8. | GAC Aion Y | China |
| 9. | VW ID.4 | Germany |
| 10. | BYD Seagull | China |
Continuing form where it left in 2022, Tesla Model Y has been the most sold electric car in 2023.
At second place, Tesla Model 3 is facing close competition from BYD Song Pro/Plus. The Chinese EV automaker BYD was founded in 1995 as a battery maker, and is now the largest maker of PHEVs and the second largest maker of BEVs after Tesla.
The Yuan Plus is BYDs leading export model. BYD’s Atto 3 ( or Yuan Plus – depending on market ) is being sold in various countries including Germany, the UK, Japan, and India. The other Chinese automaker GAC Group also had two models of its Aion EV brand make the rankings.
For Volkswagen’s ID.4 model, Europe and China account for the majority of sales.
According to forecasts from Goldman Sachs, global EV sales are projected to make up half of new car sales globally by 2035 driving on growing cost efficiencies and changing consumer behavior.
