US Nissan LEAF Sales Increase 118%, LEAF Holds #1 Spot In US Electric Car Sales

Published on March 4th, 2014 by Zach

Following its market-leading position in January US electric car sales, the Nissan LEAF took #1 again in February. (Though, it was just a little above our estimate for Tesla Model S deliveries*, and if Tesla wasn’t supply-limited and shipping cars to Europe, it would likely have landed at #1.)

The top 6 models were actually exactly the same in February as they were in January. The Chevy Volt remained at #3, still taking a noticeable hit in sales from a combination of increasing competition and potential production bottlenecks. The Toyota Prius Plug-in remained at #4, the Ford Fusion Energi remained at #5, and the Ford C-Max Energi remained at #6. Congrats to Toyota and Ford for holding strong, which is likely a testament to their EV manufacturing approach, which is to have electric models share manufacturing lines with conventional sister models, allowing for easy ramping up or down of production as demand warrants.

The rest of the list isn’t really worth discussing, imho. It’s basically a bunch of compliance cars and a couple of high-end plug-in hybrid models.

Here are static images of some of the charts above for those of you who prefer static images over the interactive ones above:

February 2014 US EV Sales

February 2014 YTD US EV Sales

*Tesla Model S deliveries are based on overall Tesla quarterly guidance, including expected deliveries to Europe.

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About the Author

Zach is the director of CleanTechnica, the most popular cleantech-focused website in the world, and Planetsave, a world-leading green and science news site. He has been covering green news of various sorts since 2008, and he has been especially focused on solar energy, electric vehicles, and wind energy since 2009. Aside from his work on CleanTechnica and Planetsave, he's the founder and director of Solar Love, EV Obsession, and Bikocity. Zach has long-term investments in TSLA, SCTY, FSLR, SPWR, SEDG, & ABB. After years of covering solar and EVs, he simply had a lot of faith in these companies and felt like they were good companies to invest in as a portion of his retirement strategy. To connect with Zach on some of your favorite social networks, go to ZacharyShahan.com and click on the relevant buttons.

Mak

How do you estimate Tesla Model S vehicle sales?
- Zachary Shahan
  
  Based on Tesla guidance for the quarter and a general estimate of the # that will go to Europe, based on statements by Elon Musk. I also go back and revise estimates as needed once quarter totals are finally in.
  
  But wish Tesla would just start sharing these numbers…
  - Mak
    
    Thanks and agree on them starting to share actual numbers. So when you say revise estimates at quarter end, what you are doing is tallying up country by country reported stats?
    - Zachary Shahan
      
      Yeah, everyone is begging for those numbers. 😛 Yes, trying to tally up country sales as much as possible.
StefanoR99

Who no Fiat 500e stats? See a load of them zooming around the roads in the Bay Area…
- Zachary Shahan
  
  Believe me, I wish I had them. Fiat won’t share. Some sites make estimates, but those are VERY rough estimates based on very limited information. I prefer not to make very rough estimates.
  
  That said, Fiat has basically said it is selling as few as possible. Head of Fiat not a fan of EVs. It’s a wonder the company created such an awesome one! Can’t wait until it is only logical for Fiat to sell the 500e more broadly.
  - StefanoR99
    
    Such a shame! For me its the second coolest EV out there (obviously the ultimate remains the model S). Seriously considering leasing one just to try it out as a second car…
    - Zachary Shahan
      
      Yes, I know. Wish someone at Fiat would make a strong move to bring it to more people. Would love to feature a review if you get it!