100% electric car sales were up 31% in the USA in April 2015 compared to April 2014, and sales from January through April were up 63% (with my estimate for Tesla Model S sales included). Overall, sales of all plug-in cars were up 9% in April, and 36% for January through April.
I’ll admit it, though: the race at the top had gotten a bit boring. Month after month, we were seeing the Tesla Model S, Nissan LEAF, and BMW i3 in the top 3 positions. But April really shook things up!
Most notably, the Chevy Spark EV came out of nowhere and landed in the top 3, with 920 sales, an 848.5% increase over last year, and 11% of the overall plug-in car pie in April. Honestly, I don’t think many people saw that coming.
Sadly, the BMW i3 dropped off a great deal. I have no idea if that was related to supply or demand. However, I imagine the announcement of the very attractive 2016 Chevy Volt could have eaten into consumer interest for the i3 a bit. The current Volt actually did alright, though, despite a much better Volt coming to market soon — perhaps it was sweet deals being offered by Chevy dealers as they move out the older product. Or perhaps it was just Volt lovers needing a car before the 2016 model becomes available.
The Tesla Model S took #1 based on my sales estimate, and it is dominating YTD sales. Of course, Tesla is still supply limited, but the more it is able to increase output, the more we are seeing how much demand exists for what is arguably the best mass-manufactured car on the planet.
Meanwhile, the Nissan LEAF held onto its stronghold on #2 (a spot it’s not used to on the global stage, where it is clearly #1.) Ford’s Energi models also chugged along with their more or less consistent sales of several hundred a month.
Here are the charts and tables for you to more closely examine the numbers:
