Plug-In Car Share Surged To 30% In August 2023

In August, plug-in electric car sales in Europe increased quite noticeably, reaching the highest market share so far this year.

According to EV Volumes data, shared by Jose Pontes, in August, 270,356 new plug-in electric cars were registered in Europe, about 68 percent more than a year ago. That’s about 30 percent of the total volume.

The all-electric car segment expanded even quicker with a surge of 106 percent year-over-year to almost 200,000 units, taking more than one-fifth of the market (22 percent). That’s about three times more than in the United States.

Plug-in car registrations for the month:

BEVs: *198,000 (up 106%) and 22% market share
PHEVs: *72,000 and 8% market share
Total: 270,356 (up 68%) and 30% market share

* estimated from the market share

So far this year, more than 1.9 million passenger plug-in electric cars have been registered in Europe, which is about 23 percent of the total market.

Plug-in car registrations year-to-date:

BEVs: *1.28 million and 15% market share
PHEVs: *0.64 million and 8% market share
Total: 1,945,828 (up 35%) and 23% market share

* estimated from the market share

For reference, in 2022, more than 2.6 million new passenger plug-in electric cars were registered in Europe (about 23 percent of the total volume).

The Tesla Model Y noted a very strong month with 21,824 new registrations in August and once again securing the first position among rechargeable cars in Europe.

Interestingly, the Tesla Model 3 also was very strong with 11,998 new registrations, beating the top Volkswagen Group MEB-based models – Volkswagen ID.4 (8,439), Skoda Enyaq iV (8,075), and Volkswagen ID.3 (6,878). Nonetheless, it’s worth noting that Volkswagen BEV sales improved recently.

Results for the month:

Tesla Model Y – 21,824
Tesla Model 3 – 11,998
Volkswagen ID.4 – 8,439
Skoda Enyaq iV – 8,075
Volkswagen ID.3 – 6,878
MG 4 – 6,733
Dacia Spring – 5,973
Fiat 500 electric – 5,847
Audi Q4 e-tron – 5,442
Cupra Born – 5,205

After the first eight months of 2023, the Tesla Model Y remains a lone leader, while the Tesla Model 3 returned to second position, slightly ahead of the Volkswagen ID.4.

Results in January-August:

Tesla Model Y – 171,914
Tesla Model 3 – 60,902
Volkswagen ID.4 – 58,853
Volvo XC40 (33,034 BEVs + 19,296 PHEVs) – 52,330
Volkswagen ID.3 – 46,589
Skoda Enyaq iV – 45,562
MG 4 – 44,507
Fiat 500 electric – 43,260
Audi Q4 e-tron – 42,267
Dacia Spring – 38,923

Tesla remains the most popular plug-in car brand in Europe, by registration volume, while the Volkswagen Group is beyond reach for any other automotive group (when counting BEVs and PHEVs together).

Top brands by share in the plug-in segment in January-August: