Plug-in electric car sales in China continue to amaze and June was no exception, as the market expanded once again, reaching a new all-time record.
According to EV Volumes’ data, shared by Jose Pontes, 713,932 new passenger plug-in electric cars were registered in China in June. That’s the highest result ever and a 28 percent increase year-over-year.
Not only that, the market share of rechargeable cars improved to 38 percent of the total new passenger car sales. It’s significantly more than in Europe (25 percent) or in the United States (probably over 7 percent).
The most significant metric is how big the Chinese share is out of the global plug-in car share – close to 57 percent, according to recent registration numbers. Let’s also note that most plug-ins sold in China are also produced in China, while the rest of the world often imports cars from China.
Another interesting thing is that all-electric models represented a quarter of the Chinese car market last month. Plug-in hybrids were responsible for about 13 percent.
Results for the month:
- BEVs: *470,000 and 25% share
- PHEVs: *244,000 and 13% share
- Total: 713,932 (up 28% year-over-year) and 38% share
* estimated from the market share
So far this year, more than 3.2 million new plug-in electric cars were registered in China (up roughly 38 percent year-over-year), which is about 35 percent of the total volume.
Results year-to-date:
- BEVs: about *2.2 million and 24% share
- PHEVs: about *1.0 million and 11% share
- Total: 3,262,831 (up 38% year-over-year) and 35% share
* estimated from the market share
For reference, in 2022, over 5.92 million new passenger plug-in electric cars were registered in China (30 percent of the total volume).
In June, four out of the top five cars sold in China were rechargeable, including the Tesla Model Y as number one, followed by BYD Song, Qin and Yuan. The Nissan Sylphy (the most popular ICE model) was fifth.
Top 10 plug-ins for the month:
- Tesla Model Y: 51,471
- BYD Song Plus (2,203 BEVs + 41,085 PHEVs): 43,288
- BYD Qin Plus (11,420 BEVs + 30,666 PHEVs): 42,086
- BYD Yuan Plus (aka Atto 3) BEV: 30,012
- BYD Dolphin: 26,408
- BYD Han (11,033 BEVs + 12,173 PHEVs): 23,206
- Tesla Model 3: 22,741
- GAC Aion S: 22,487
- GAC Aion Y: 20,583
- Wuling Bingo: 19,740
Despite the Tesla Model Y’s surge in June, the most popular cars during the first half of the year were BYDs: Song and Qin families. The Model Y was third, followed by two more BYDs – Yuan and Dolphin.
Nonetheless, the Tesla Model Y remains the most popular all-electric model in China.
Top 10 plug-ins year-to-date:
- BYD Song Plus (30,317 BEVs + 227,896 PHEVs): 258,213
- BYD Qin Plus (54,796 BEVs + 149,419 PHEVs): 204,215
- Tesla Model Y: 203,932
- BYD Yuan Plus (aka Atto 3) BEV: 165,588
- BYD Dolphin: 157,359
- Wuling Hong Guang MINI EV: 122,037
- GAC Aion S: 115,599
- BYD Han (47,456 BEVs + 48,357 PHEVs): 95,813
- GAC Aion Y: 92,009
- Tesla Model 3: 90,173
* BEV and PHEV versions of the same models were counted together in the source.
BYD is the most popular brand and automotive group in China, and this is not expected to change anytime soon.
Top brands by share in the plug-in segment in January-June:
- BYD: 35.3%
- Tesla: 9.1%
- GAC Aion: 6.5%
- SAIC-GM-Wuling: 5.8%
- Li Auto: 4.3%
Top automotive groups by share in the plug-in segment in January-June:
- BYD: 37.0%
including Denza brand - Tesla: 9.1%
- SAIC: 7.4%
including SAIC-GM-Wuling joint venture (between SAIC, GM and Liuzhou Wuling Motors) - GAC: 6.9%
- Geely-Volvo: 5.5%
