U.S. Battery-Electric / PHEV Sales Comparison For H1 2019
Share of plug-in hybrids in June fell to 19.1%, the lowest level since 2011
Plug-in electric cars divide into two major categories — battery-electric (BEVs) and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs). BEVs are fully electric, while PHEVs are equipped with an internal combustion engine (for support or backup).
In the U.S., since 2018 we have been observing the split between the two as battery-electric cars are growing quickly and taking more and more market share. PHEVs, on the other hand, are not only losing market share, but also decreasing year-over-year.
Sales results in June follow suit and bring us to the lowest share for PHEVs since 2011:
- BEVs: 30,578 (up 110%) at 80.9% share
- PHEVs: 7,240 (down 31%) at 19.1% share
- Total: 37,818 (up 51%)
The split between PHEVs and BEVs requires some assumptions because vehicle classification is not always reported and we don’t have all the data. In this report, we use our estimations to add all plug-ins without internal combustion engine to BEVs, and all with internal combustion engine (in any configuration) to PHEVs. Because the BMW i3 comes in two versions (with or without ICE – REx) and we don’t know exact numbers, we assumed 50% for BEVs and 50% for PHEVs by the end of 2018 and 75% BEVs from 2019. Some of the results for the other models are also estimated – see our monthly plug-in sales scorecard for data.
For the first half of this year:
- BEVs: 106,959 (up 64%) at 71.9% share
- PHEVs: 41,745 (down 29%) at 28.1% share
- Total: 148,704 (up 20%)
See also
U.S. All-Electric Car Sales
Sales of BEVs have highly accelerated since the ramp-up of the Tesla Model 3 and consistently stands for the majority of sales.
U.S. Plug-In Hybrid Car Sales
Plug-in hybrids have experienced a decline over the past several months, which, combined with the growth of all-electric cars, translates to lower and lower share.
The question is whether longer-range BEVs are killing PHEVs or it's just a lack of progress on the PHEV side alone.
BEVs/PHEVs
Here are few comparisons of BEVs and PHEVs side by side:
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