French EV market off to a slow start after record 2017
This January saw sales of pure electric cars decrease by almost a quarter in France compared to the beginning of 2017. PHEV however managed to double their numbers and the decline in BEV had one little big reason, Renault’s Zoe.
Renault’s compact electric car remains the best-selling electric car in France. It has been for a long time and January 2018 is no different. However, the decrease in EV sales shows when compared to January 2017 because that last year had been “exceptionelle”. It was when the new Zoe launched with a bigger battery, leading to record sales.
But 2018 has not been too strong in electric car sales yet overall. There were 1,936 new electric models registered in January 2018, a decrease of 24.5 percent compared to 2017 according to Avere.
On the plug-in hybrid side however, numbers have entered the bright side of the scale. 956 new PHEVs mean a plus of 139.6 percent. Note, that there were 10 Hyundai IX35 Hydrogen and 29 Kangoo with fuel cell range extender registered across France as well.
Back to the details of the electric car sales. Renault sold 633 Zoe, a decrease of 61.5% compared to last year but not enough to banish the city dweller from the top of the list.
BMW climbed to second place this January with 172 new i3s (+ 57.8%), of which 89 have a range extender. The Kia Soul EV comes in third place with 136 new registrations, an increase of + 46.2% compared to 2017.
Then come the Smart ForTwo (98 units), the Peugeot Ion (56 models, – 49.1%) and the Nissan Leaf (48, – 66.9%). The latter’s decrease is due to people waiting for the Leaf with a bigger battery to arrive in France within the next few weeks.
This year will show if France has embarked on a true upward trend in EV sales. As 2017 was record-breaking with sales crossing the 40,000 unit threshold reportedly, 2018 has some way to go.
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