UK: Plug-In Car Sales Almost Doubled In March 2022

The Tesla Model Y and Tesla Model 3 top new car sales.

By: Mark Kane

Apr 9, 2022 at 8:50pm ET

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In March, new passenger car registrations in the UK decreased by a noticeable 14.3% year-over-year to 243,479, which is the weakest March since 1998.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) notes that results are so low because supply chain shortages constrain deliveries.

On the other hand, plug-in electric car sales expand quickly despite the challenging situation.

According to the official data, last month's passenger plug-in electric car registrations amounted to 55,352, which is 41% more than a year ago and a new all-time monthly record.

Market share was close to 23%. Together with 27,737 non-rechargeable hybrids (up 28.4%), the xEVs (BEVs, PHEVs, HEVs) stand for 34.1% of the market.

The most important thing for us is that the all-electric car registrations reached a new all-time monthly record of 39,315 (up 79% year-over-year), which is 16.1% of the total market. On the other hand, plug-in hybrids are in retreat - down almost 8% year-over-year to 16,037.

Plug-in electric car registrations in the UK – March 2022

BEVs: 39,315 (up 79% year-over-year) at market share of 16.1%
PHEVs: 16,037 (down 7.5% year-over-year) at market share of 6.6%
Total: 55,352 (up 41% year-over-year) at market share of 22.7%

So far this year, more than 93,000 new passenger plug-in cars were registered in the UK, reaching an average market share of over 22%.

New plug-in car registrations, year-to-date in 2022:

BEVs: 64,165 (up 102% year-over-year) - market share of 15.4%
PHEVs: 29,761 (up 12% year-over-year)- market share of 7.1%
Total: 93,926 (up 61% year-over-year) - market share of 22.5%

More details, including also other types:

Top models

March was an especially strong month for Tesla, which managed to put two models at the top of the list thanks to volume deliveries.

The Tesla Model Y was the most registered model last month with 6,464, closely followed by the Tesla Model 3, which noted 6,457.

It's an amazing achievement, which allowed the duo to take #6 and #7 place year-to-date.

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Comments

The basic report does not allow us to identify sales of other electric cars, since they don't have a unique name.

LCVs

In terms of light commercial vehicles (LCV), some 40,613 were registered last month (down 28% year-over-year). Out of that, about 1,909 were all-electric (up 18%), which translated to a market share of 4.7%.