Sales

There is a category of EVs that we usually don’t still see covered because volumes are small, and these aren’t really anyone’s dream cars but deserves attention by the community : light commercial vehicles (LCVs). The market is very small (0.33% of the total market, that is at 99% diesel) and the number of available models, even smaller.

The Kangoo ZE was a top player in this category last year, not only in Ireland but in Europe. From 0 (!) sales last year, it is now leading the segment with 41 registrations for 2018. Note that it means that 5% of Kangoos are Electric, the rest being diesel (on a total of 799 Kangoo sold last year).

Renault Kangoo Express Z.E.

It became somewhat more popular since the 33kWh battery (264km NEDC, 200km real life) replaced the 24kWh one (that it is no longer leased). The higher price (compared to a diesel variant) and lack of fast charging capability isn’t stopping fleet managers (last kilometre deliveries, postal services) who make rational choices and show that EVs do make a lot of sense in such application, even without fast charging.

The Citroën Berlingo Electric has been recently imported, and balances its small battery (24kWh) and even smaller range (170km NEDC) by a fast charging option (50kW Chademo socket). Note that the new Berlingo doesn’t exist just yet with an electric powertrain, and that the outgoing one is therefore still produced, exclusively in Electric form (including a 5-seat MPV form in some markets).

Citroën Berlingo Electric

Finally The Nisan ENV-200 is the 3rd contender. Moving from a 24kWh to 40kWh battery pack led to a large number of orders at the European level but also supply issues, that could explain the lower local sales. Active battery (air) cooling and 50kW Chademo socket are standard.

Nissan ENV-200

You will find below the historical sales of Electric LCVs. Only these 3 Electric vans have been sold so far in Ireland, in relatively low volumes, but as for the other EV categories, 2018 is the best year ever.

These are the top 10 best selling new PHEVs for 2018. Find at the bottom the comprehensive sales table, per month. You can also find here the 2018 best selling BEVs list.

1. BMW 530e iPerformance (150) : +384% – This is a very respectable level of sales considering that the 5-series is a premium model. A proof that it has gained respect from its customers and sales network : Only 67 petrol 5-series were sold during the same period. The 520d is still the star of that range but things are slowly changing. Find our test drive here.

2. Kia Niro PHEV (136) : It has landed in 2018 and is the most affordable PHEV on the Irish market, at €31.495. It is ticking all the boxes for an Irish success being a roomy family car with a crossover look, that allowed it to get the second spot of the market.

3. BMW 330e iPerformance (93) : -16% – It was the best selling PHEV last year but is now discontinued… The new 3-series has just been launched and the 330e variant will only arrive during the second part of 2019.

4. Volvo XC90 T8 (66) : +50% – The former best selling Irish PHEV SUV is still going strong.

5. Mini Countryman Cooper SE All4 (42) : +320% Find our test drive here

6. Volvo XC60 T8 (36) : +500%. Not as popular as the XC90 just yet but catching up.

7. Hyundai Ioniq PHEV (28) – Launched in 2018. Could do much better considering its €31995 price and its good efficiency.

7. Porsche Panamera (28) : A compliance car, but representing over 90% of Panamera sales, now that the diesel is gone.

9. Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV (26) : +24% – The original PHEV SUV is back, at a much cheaper price tag. Sales have shown great progress during the second part of 2018 and it could be in the 2019 top 3.

10. Toyota Prius (23) : -23%. This doesn’t seem to get much attention from is sales network, a collateral damage from the so called “self-charging” cars campaign that denigrates any car with a socket.

These are the top 10 of best selling new BEVs for the 2018 year. Well, top 10 is a bit pushing it as there were exactly 10 different pure electric cars sold last year. More than 2017’s 9 models anyway and probably less than in 2019! Find the 2018 top 10 PHEVs list here

Find at the bottom the comprehensive 2018 sales tables

1. Nissan Leaf (789) : +207% – The Nissan Leaf is obviously a huge hit with a sales record over the previous generation, it is selling 8 times more than its next outsider, the Renault Zoé.

2. Renault Zoé (93) : +63% – Despite being now 6 years old, the Zoé sales have been progressing in Ireland again in 2018, helped with its new battery-inclusive pricing. With a start price of just €24,990, it’s also the cheapest BEV on the market and yet gets a decent 40kWh battery.

2. Hyundai Ioniq Electric (93) : -60% – This is a disappointment, when last year it was very close to the Nissan Leaf and gained respect within the EV community thanks to its high efficiency. How’s 2019 will go with the Kona’s competition ? We’re hoping for a bigger battery pack to be launched soon as it currently has the smaller capacity of lot.

4. Volkswagen E-Golf (80) : +700% – Finally some Irish interest into the well packaged but expensive popular car. The new Executive Edition might help sales to progress further in 2019.

5. Tesla Model S (79) : +119% – Tesla is now somewhat established in Ireland. Note that if its sales are behind the Mercedes S Class (101 units sold last year), it frankly outsells the BMW 7 series (42) and the Audi A8 (36).

6. BMW i3 (56) : +367% – Sales of the i3 are modest but progressing. 2019 looks even brighter thanks to a lower price and a bigger 42kWh battery.

7. Tesla Model X (36) : +157% – The big Tesla is doing well for a €100K+ car !

8. Jaguar i-pace (3) : Jaguar’s new model has recently landed in Ireland and will surely progress in 2019.

9. Nissan e-NV 200 Evalia (2) : -33%. It has just gone through a battery pack upgrade (from 24 to 40kWh)

9. Hyundai Kona (2) – The Kona and its class leading 64kWh battery pack is expected to be a success but supply with be an issue so it might not come anywhere close to the Nissan Leaf in 2019.

A total of 1233 new BEVs that were registered in 2018, doubling last year’s results, see below the details :

In November, 19 new PHEVs were sold. Not very significant but still representing 2.9% of the total market this moth. And 0.59% on the course of the year.

Used imports are still very strong, and dominated by the Outlander PHEV. 173 used PHEVs were imported last month.

Irish BEVs Sales are still growing in November, despite low volumes due to the nearing of the end of year. Note the first registration of Hyundai Kona Electric.

Used imports are stable compared to November 2017, with 58 units registered.

The PHEV market is somehow more eventful than the BEVs one with 2 interesting elements:

First on the new car market, the new Outlander PHEV has now landed in dealerships with 10 registrations, making this car the best seller of the month (but just 9th year to date).

Click on image for full-size view

And then the most remarkable event is the ever growing number of used imports. Where is it going to stop ? The very good supply of the UK market, low GBP/EUR exchange rate, affordable VRT and cheap road tax are making a PHEV import a no-brainer for many, and the word is obviously spreading. No less than 184 used PHEVs were imported last month. Keep in mind that just 224 PHEVs were imported for the whole 2017 year. This contrasts with the BEV imports that flucturated so far this year between 41 and 75 units per month.

Monthly sales of used import PHEVs, 2017 and 2018. Click on image for full-size view

Click on image for full-size view

With the end of year approaching, new cars sales become less significant. In October 37 new BEVs were registered in Ireland, which is a 27.6% growth over the same period in 2017, and 2.14% market share.

Click on the table for full size view

Used imports are growing 75.6% in October, bringing the total number of used BEVs imported this year to 600 (+54.2%).

This makes a grand total of 1811 BEVs (new and used) registered so far this year, and we could reach 2000 units by the end of the year

Click on the table for full size view

With the WLTP rules now in place, a number of European countries see their new car sales dropping from this month of September, caused by important pre-WLTP stock registered as these cars had to be registered before the 1st September. The Irish market dropped 17.9% after being in positive territory in August. But BEVs are not concerned by these changes resulting sales still up 106.2 % compared to the same month last year. The Nissan Leaf is once again the star of the segment, and once again is part of the Irish top 10 with a 7th place ! The Renault Zoé is still doing well and catching up with the Hyundai Ioniq that has seen zero registration this month. BEV have represented 3.09% of the Irish car market, a new record !

Used imports are still progressing, 42.9% year over year, with the usual dominance of the Nissan Leaf.

Sales growth of new PHEVs is slowing down, but we are in August above 1% market share, and with the addition to BEVs, close to 4%! The Kia Niro is still leading the segment this month.

As for used imports, the growth is still very strong with another record month : 118 imports, with a majority of Mitsubishi Outlanders.

The total of PHEVs were registered in 184 this months, and with the addition of 241 BEVs are making a total of 425 more cars with sockets on our roads.

Kia Niro PHEV

Source : Simi

This is another very good month for BEV sales, and once again thanks to the Nissan Leaf, totalling 112 registrations in August. Not only the popular hatchback accounts for 2 thirds of BEV registrations but is also in the Irish top 10 !

Leaf was Ireland’s 10th Best selling car in August !

BEVs accounted for a very impressive 2.8% of the total new car market. Note that besides the Leaf most BEVs are performing quite well. The Jaguar i-Pace is entering the market with 1 registration in August.

Used BEVs imports are still strong with 75 registration (+38.9% vs 2017), best month of the year 2018 so far.

The first Irish i-Pace has been registered last month

Source : Simi

Irish new PHEV sales are still up, to 142 units registered, and 0.53% market share in July, up 149% over July 2017.

The Kia Niro PHEV is still going strong since its launch last spring, and now leading the segment (both in July and year to date), thanks to 56 new registrations.

The used import market is still lead by the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV. totalling half of July registrations (91 in total).

A total of 555 used imports and 575 new PHEVs sold so far this year, more than were ever registered previous to 2018 (see table below), showing that PHEVs have now gained a real interest in the eyes of the Irish public.

For the 182 plate season, Irish BEV Sales are up a massive 247% in July, to 386 units (compared to 111 last year). The growth is solely due to the registration of 305 Nissan Leaf, showing the huge interest in this model, and probably an adequate supply! Not only it’s the first time so many new EVs are registered in a single month but the Leaf is in the Irish top 30 with over 1% market share. So far this year 915 new BEVs have been registered, which is more than the whole 2017 year (622 registrations in total).

Used imports registrations are much more stable, with a growth of 6.7% over last year, to 48 units.

June is traditionally a very slow month for the Irish car market with just 1255 cars registered for the end of the 181 period. As with the rest of the semester, BEVs have been doing better than the average with 17 registrations (just 4 in June 2017) and 1.35% market share. 6 Nissan Leaf, 4 Tesla Model S and 3 Volkswagen E-Golf were sold last month.

Across the first semester a total of 529 BEVs were registered, which is a 41.4% progress over 2017 (171) and an all time record. 2017 was already a record year and saw 622 registrations (see 2017 best selling BEVs here), a level we’ll probably beat as early as July !

Another 55 used BEVs were imported last month, for a total of 335 for the first semester (+67.5% vs 2017). This means another 864 BEVs were added on the Irish roads during the period, bringing a total registrations of well over 3000 units.

PHEVs sales are still growing exponentially in May with 54 new registrations (+575% vs 2017). The Kia Niro PHEV is leading for the second consecutive month and 3rd year to date. Will it be the best selling Irish PHEV in 2018 ?

PHEVs market share is at 0.89% (0.49% to date)

Used imports are also steadily growing : 80 units were imported last month (+700% vs 2017). The Mitsubishi Outlander is almost making for 50% of all used imports PHEVs this year.

A total of 134 PHEVs were registered in May (792 to date in 2018, exactly the same as for BEVs).

Mini Countryman Cooper S E All 4

New Irish BEVs sales are again growing significantly in May : 88 units were registered during the month (+193.3% vs May 2017), the new Leaf still clearly leading the segment.

The market share is once again above 1% (1.45% exactly) and the BEVs share to date is 0.60%

Used imports are also up 118.7% (vs May 2017) with 70 units registered, mostly Nissan Leaf. Note that Tesla Model S imports are still going strong with 12 more units in May.

This brings the total number of BEVs imported to 280 cars so far this year (+69.7% vs 2017).

That is a total of 158 BEVs registered in May in Ireland, and 792 so far in 2018.

2018 Nissan Leaf XE

As for previous months, PHEV sales are extremely dynamic compared to last year, with 77 new cars sold (+670%) and  82 used cars imported (+583%) in April.

New PHEV account for 0.95% of the total car market, which added to the 1.75% market share for BEVs last month, can makes us think a shift is happening in people’s purchase habits : one every 37 new cars sold in April had a socket !

New sales are this month dominated by the new Kia Niro (29 units sold) whereas the Mitsubishi Outlander is still on top of the used imports.

For the first time ever, BEV sales have passed 1% share of the Irish car market (1.75% exactly). This is due not only to the growing demand of EVs but also to the deliveries of the new Leaf. It might be a peak due to backed up orders but the interest for the Leaf is great and sales will remain high, as long as the factory can supply cars ! At the European level, the order pace at the beginning of the year was 4000 units/month. In 2016, best year for the original Leaf, Nissan sold a bit more than 18.000 units of this model. I’ll let you do the maths 🙂 The other models are selling relatively well and if you add the 41 used imports, these are 182 more BEVs that landed on Irish roads last month.

PHEV new sales were still extremely active in March, growing 146.5% over last year. BMW is still leading with the 530e and 330e. Including the i3 Rex and the X5 xDrive40e, BMW owns almost half of this market.

On the used import front (+600% vs 2017!), note the massive influx of Outlanders, representing over half of all imports.

See below the new sales and used import figures for the month of March and the cumulative for the year.

BEV sales are growing 53.6% last month with a total of 106 new cars registered in March, meaning a 0.60% share of all sales. Deliveries of the new Leaf have just started, Tesla sales are still impressive considering the cost of these. Finally note the good performance of the E-Golf : 18 units sold in March ie the same as during the 2015-2017 period! On the first 3 months, the total is still negative compared to 2017 but this should turn around in April with hopefully more Leaf delivered.

Used imports are also growing, 30.4% this month, 74.2% since the beginning of the year.

This makes a total of 166 EVs registered in Ireland this month, 523 during the first quarter of the year.

PHEV new sales have been growing in February 61.7% over the same month last year, with is better than BEVs. BMW and Volvo are still holding the podium.

PHEV used imports are also very dynamic, growing 5 fold in February, after a similar performance last month. The Outlander PHEV is becoming very popular thanks to keen used prices in the UK (starts under £ 10,000 with a great choice around the £ 12,000 mark). Other models aren’t as strong as these have been launched more recently, ie dearer to import.