Tesla Inc. was the undisputed overlord of the U.S. electric vehicle (EV) market in Q1 2019, accounting for 75 percent of all EVs sold in this period. And the Tesla Model 3 was the best selling EV far and away.
The Model 3 has gotten tens of thousands of more consumers per quarter to go electric compared to any previous EV model, said website Clean Technica. Its data shows the Model 3 accounted for 60 percent of all EV sales in Q1. The Model S took 8 percent and the Model X, 7 percent.
Clean Technica, however, said its percentages for the Model S and X are estimates, "since we don't actually know how Model S versus Model X sales broke out globally." It does have a combined sales figure. It also said it doesn't know what portion of Tesla's sales are in the U.S.
Combined, these three Tesla models accounted for 75 percent of the U.S. EV market in Q1 if its estimates are accurate. This figure is a marked improvement from 67 percent in Q1 2018.
In numbers, these percentages boil down to 24,003 Model 3s sold, 3,200 Model S sold and 3,000 Model X for a combined total of 30, 203 Teslas. Clean Technica data shows 64,108 total EVsof all brands sold in the U.S. in Q1 2019.
Clean Technica data shows the Model 3 as the top-selling EV. Model 3 was the third top and the Model X, fourth. The second best selling EV was the Chevy Bolt and the fifth, the Nissan Leaf.
Global EV sales had a great year in 2018. Global sales came to 2.1 million EVs in 2017, a 64 percent jump is year-on-year.
Pure EVs were the most popular with 69 percent of sales being battery electric vehicles (BEVs) such as the Tesla Model S,3 and X, while 31 percent were plug-in hybrid EVs (PHEVs).
The biggest EV growth market was China, which accounted for 56 percent of global EV sales. The U.S. saw sales surge by 79 percent in 2018, thanks mainly to the Tesla Model 3, which sold 138,000 units.
EV sales in Europe was an encouraging 34 percent. The rest of the world saw EV sales growth at 39 percent with Canada and South Korea seeing major growth.
