Top 10 Global Best-selling Electric and Hybrid Cars 2014
June 14th, 2015 by Alyn Wallace
Much to the joy of the environment, electric and hybrid electric vehicles are continuing to increase in the global market share taking the place of petrol guzzling combustion engines. Fully-electric and hybrid cars make up a group known as Plug-In Electric Vehicles (PEVs) which accumulated 718,000 sales in 2014.
U.S.A. is by far the largest PEV consumer with 290,000, three-times the volume of second-place China, 113,355. And this is followed by Japan (104,877), Netherlands (43,762), France (43,605), and Norway (43,442).
So without further ado, here is a round up of the top 10 best selling PEVs of 2014:
10. Ford C-Max Energi – 8,705
Ford begin the list with the C-Max Hybrid, a large yet compact five-passenger hatchback which is a hybrid version of the combustion engine European model available in the U.S. and Canada – with only 272 of the sales found in Canada.
9. Renault Zoe – 11,323
Next up is the Renault-Nissan Alliance’s Zoe, which has 20,265 total sales since lat 2012; over 11,000 of these being in 2014. It’s an all electric offering sold mostly in Europe.
8. Ford Fusion Energi – 11,719
Ford are back in the list with the Fusion Energi, a smaller offering this time. Again sold only in the U.S. and Canada but the U.S. dominating the 11,719 sales being responsible for 11,550 of them. The Fusion and C-Max share a 2.0-liter Atkinson cycle engine and are differentiated by their larger propulsion batteries and EPA rated range of 19 electric miles.
7. BYD Qin – 14,747
The BYD Qin is China’s best selling PEV ever (it’s also sold a few in Latin America) and is a quick plug-in hybrid sedan with estimated 0-60 time of 5.9 seconds, and 300 horsepower from its 1.5-liter turbo engine plus electric motor. Although not an official EPA rating, its EV range is said to be 31 miles.
6. BMW i3 – 16,052
Enter Germany’s BMW with the i3 offering being sold worldwide and accounting for 16,052 sales in 2014. It’s a full electric, innovative and lightweight vehicle, the latter a result of intensive use of carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics.
5. Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid – Approx. 18,400
The more well known Toyota Prius hits number 5 on the list with 18,400 sales, however since launch they have sold approximately 67,000 units. Although high on the list the Prius saw a decline of 14 percent in sales during 2014.
4. Volt/Ampera – Approx. 21,323
Another American car on the list this time from Chevrolet with the Volt, also badged as Holden Volt, and an Opel and Vauxhall Ampera in other markets. A slump in sales by about 18% sees 21,000 being sold in 2014, however, sales are expected to go back up with the new revamped 2016 Volt.
3. Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV – 31,136
Despite not selling in the U.S. the Mistubushi Outlander managed to rack up 31,000 sales. Sold in Europe, Japan, Australia and New Zealand, it is the only plug-in hybrid SUV in the list. It saw an impressive 75% jump in sales from 2013.
2. Tesla Model S – 31,655
Another familiar face to most in terms of electric vehicles, the Tesla Model S. It now comes in an all-wheel drive model with the P85D model featuring an “Insane Mode”. It’s managed to place 2nd in the list as well as being the most expensive
U.S. sales last year are estimated at 16,550, down an estimated 11.3 percent as Tesla was exporting abroad from finite production capacity in California. Cumulative sales since launch in the U.S. mid 2012 is globally estimated at 56,782.
1. Nissan Leaf – 61,507
Dominating the list with 61,507 sales is the Nissan Leaf. It’s nearly doubled the sales of 2nd place Tesla and it’s nearly half the price too. Since Nissan’s December 2010 launch, Nissan has sold over 158,000 Leafs.
It means that the top 2 sellers are fully-electric vehicles. It’s rated on the U.S. EPA cycle as providing an 84-mile range on a single charge. There’s rumours of the 2017 leaf offering 200 miles but this isn’t official yet. In the mean time though, check out the glow-in-the-dark version of the Nissan Leaf.
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