Automotive
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| #1 in 2016? |
"Sweet Home Chevy Volt" Edition
The Second Generation Chevy Volt had some big wheels to keep on turning, as the first generation had been three times the Best Selling Plug-In in the US (2010, 2012 & 2013) and the market now it's far more competitive than in those days, but as the Lynyrd Skynyrd song says, The Skies are so blue for the GM product, with Nissan having trouble in marketing the 30kWh Leaf and Tesla more worried in getting the QC right on the Model X, it seems that it will be a matter of time for the Volt to be back at Numero Uno.
In February deliveries of the sleek hatchback were up 63% YoY, to 1.126 units and with the 2017 now nation-wide Volt just arriving, expect for a super-month in March (2.5k?), rivaling the Model S usual headlining-last-quarter-month, which my guess will be at around 2.500 units also.
In April, the Model S deliveries will probably drop to the lowest point of the roller coaster, time when the Volt will finally surpass it and reach the leadership for good.
But enough guessing, looking at February, total sales were above 7.800 units, with numbers up 13% YoY, it looks that the US EV market is slowly picking up speed.
In February deliveries of the sleek hatchback were up 63% YoY, to 1.126 units and with the 2017 now nation-wide Volt just arriving, expect for a super-month in March (2.5k?), rivaling the Model S usual headlining-last-quarter-month, which my guess will be at around 2.500 units also.
In April, the Model S deliveries will probably drop to the lowest point of the roller coaster, time when the Volt will finally surpass it and reach the leadership for good.
But enough guessing, looking at February, total sales were above 7.800 units, with numbers up 13% YoY, it looks that the US EV market is slowly picking up speed.
Looking at the models ranking, a word of notice is due to the Ford Fusion Energi, reaching the Bronze medal in February, thanks to 932 units, in a way, this model is the Donald Trump of EV's, despite being criticized for its small range and protruding battery pack, it continues to silence critics with decent and consistent performances (#6 in '13, #5 in '14 and '15 and now #3).
Good performance also by the Hyundai Sonata Plug-In (200 sales), continuing to improve its sales level, the same can't be said of the performance from the Tesla Model X, only 400 units delivered in its seventh month in the market is...Underwhelming. Quality Control issues continue to haunt the Sports-Minivan-SUV deliveries, luckily there hasn't been many complaints from actual drivers, but one questions how much time will pass until the "X" reaches full speed in deliveries and starts to reduce the months (years?) long waiting list.
Good performance also by the Hyundai Sonata Plug-In (200 sales), continuing to improve its sales level, the same can't be said of the performance from the Tesla Model X, only 400 units delivered in its seventh month in the market is...Underwhelming. Quality Control issues continue to haunt the Sports-Minivan-SUV deliveries, luckily there hasn't been many complaints from actual drivers, but one questions how much time will pass until the "X" reaches full speed in deliveries and starts to reduce the months (years?) long waiting list.
In the manufacturers ranking, Tesla (22%) gained speed, distancing itself from but Chevrolet and Ford, both at 18% share.
| Pl | USA | Feb. | YTD | % |
| 1 | Tesla Model S e) | 1.475 | 2.284 | 16 |
| 2 | Chevrolet Volt | 1.126 | 2.122 | 15 |
| 3 | Nissan Leaf | 930 | 1.685 | 12 |
| 4 | Ford Fusion Energi | 932 | 1.513 | 11 |
| 5 | Ford C-Max Energi | 490 | 840 | 6 |
| 6 | Tesla Model X | 400 | 770 | 6 |
| 7 | Audi A3 e-Tron | 248 | 575 | 4 |
| 8 | Volkswagen e-Golf | 198 | 526 | 4 |
| 8 | BMW X5 40e PHEV | 345 | 526 | 4 |
| 10 | Fiat 500e | 210 | 485 | 3 |
| 11 | BMW i3 | 248 | 430 | 3 |
| 12 13 14 15 | Volvo XC90 T8 PHEV Hyundai Sonata Plug-In Chevrolet Spark EV Porsche Cayenne Plug-In | 176 200 216172 | 402 375 355 318 | 3 3 3 2 |
| 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 | Cadillac ELR Ford Focus Electric Kia Soul EV Smart Fortwo ED Mercedes B250e BMW i8 Por. Panamera Plug-In Mercedes S550e Toyota Prius Plug-In Mitsubishi I-Miev | 91 8160 54 37 54 33 196 5 | 158 147141 38102 95 86 60 16 7 | 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 |
| TOTAL | 7.806 | 14.056 | 100 |
e) Estimate
Source: insideevs.com; Good Car Bad Car
Tesla vs The Others
As Elon Musk pointed out, the real competition of Tesla aren't other EV's, but the ICE best selling models, so let's look how the Model S stands in its own domestic market (1):
| Pl | Model | 2016 |
| 1 | BMW 5-Series | 6.553 |
| 2 | Mercedes CLS / E-Class | 5.490 |
| 3 | Cadillac CTS | 2.474 |
| 4 | Lexus GS | 2.465 |
| 5 6 | Tesla Model S e) Audi A6 | 2.284 1.905 |
With two months into 2016, the Model S already surpassed the Audi A6 and now has the Lexus GS and Cadillac CTS in its sights.
A curious statistic, is that all but two models in this ranking present two digit drops, the exceptions being the 5-Series (Down only 6%) and the Model S, up 9% YoY, a small feat, considering US buyers are once again infatuated by Big SUV's and leaving big sedans in dealer lots.
A curious statistic, is that all but two models in this ranking present two digit drops, the exceptions being the 5-Series (Down only 6%) and the Model S, up 9% YoY, a small feat, considering US buyers are once again infatuated by Big SUV's and leaving big sedans in dealer lots.
(1) - Unlike markets across the pond, the full-size car market in the US is much more diversified, with Chevy Impalas, Malibu's, Chrysler 300, Dodge Chargers, etc, all theoretical adversaries to the Model S, but Tesla's direct competition isn't there, so the Model S is only compared with cars with similar price and concept.
