CHICAGO, April 22,
2014 /PRNewswire/ -- As the country celebrates
Earth Day, Cars.com reviews
fluctuations in hybrid and electric vehicle (EV) sales. The company
found hybrid sales are down 15.9 percent year-over-year, while
electric vehicle sales are up 21.8 percent year-over-year.
"EVs are in the very early stages of becoming mainstream, and
the nearly 22 percent increase from last year, compared to an
essentially flat market, indicates growing consumer acceptance,"
said Jesse Toprak, chief analyst for
Cars.com, an automotive digital marketing company. "Price points
for many pure EVs are getting closer to where it makes sense
financially for consumers. The biggest limitations for growth in
the EV segment are battery costs and range, and the lack of proper
infrastructure. Many consumers living in metropolitan areas would
like to get an EV, but aren't able to for reasons like not being
able to charge it in their apartment complex garage or lack of
nearby charging stations. Ultimately, mass adoption will
require sufficient infrastructure to be in place, and we aren't
quite there yet."
Top electric vehicle sales year-to-date include the Nissan LEAF,
Tesla Model S, Chevrolet Volt, Toyota Prius PHV, and the Ford
Fusion Energi. The Mitsubishi I-Miev saw the most significant
decline, but a new version is expected to be released later this
year. Declines were also seen in the Tesla Model S and Chevrolet
Volt.
"It appears the increased fuel efficiency of regular gas engine
vehicles, as well the rising popularity of pure EVs has made a dent
in demand for hybrids," said Toprak. "Some early adopters are now
opting for EVs because they feel hybrids aren't as eco-friendly as
the pure EV alternatives available. Regardless, hybrids are here to
stay and are still the most practical option for the majority of
environmentally conscious consumers."
Without taking into account ramp-up of new vehicle entrants, the
Lincoln MKZ, Hyundai Sonata, Lexus CT200h, and Kia Optima Hybrid
are leading the hybrid segment with the biggest increases thus far
in 2014. The most significant hybrid model drops include the
Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid, Toyota Highlander Hybrid, Ford C-Max
Hybrid, Toyota Prius V, Toyota Camry Hybrid, and Toyota Prius
Liftback.
The following data shows a summary of electric vehicle and
hybrid sales ranked by 2014 YTD sales:
Top 10 EV
Sales
|
Make/Model
|
YTD
2014
|
YTD
2013
|
YoY
|
Nissan
LEAF
|
5,184
|
3,539
|
46.5%
|
Tesla Model
S*
|
3,800
|
4,900
|
-22.4%
|
Chevrolet
Volt
|
3,606
|
4,244
|
-15.0%
|
Toyota Prius
PHV
|
3,296
|
2,353
|
40.1%
|
Ford Fusion
Energi
|
2,211
|
414
|
434.1%
|
Ford C-Max
Energi
|
1,633
|
1,166
|
40.1%
|
Ford Focus
Electric
|
406
|
419
|
-3.1%
|
smart ED
|
405
|
2
|
20150.0%
|
Chevrolet Spark
EV
|
272
|
-
|
N/A
|
Porsche Panamera
S-E
|
254
|
-
|
N/A
|
EV Industry
Total
|
21,881
|
17,963
|
21.8%
|
*Estimated
sales
|
Top 10 Hybrid
Sales
|
Make/Model
|
YTD
2014
|
YTD
2013
|
YoY
Comparison
|
Toyota Prius
Liftback
|
25,518
|
34,981
|
-27.1%
|
Ford Fusion
Hybrid
|
9,606
|
10,266
|
-6.4%
|
Toyota Prius
C
|
8,833
|
9,865
|
-10.5%
|
Toyota Camry
Hybrid
|
8,782
|
12,434
|
-29.4%
|
Toyota Prius
V
|
6,001
|
8,525
|
-29.6%
|
Hyundai
Sonata
|
5,677
|
4,256
|
33.4%
|
Lexus
CT200h
|
4,000
|
3,245
|
23.3%
|
Ford C-Max
Hybrid
|
3,933
|
8,511
|
-53.8%
|
Kia Optima
Hybrid
|
3,616
|
3,125
|
15.7%
|
Lexus ES
Hybrid
|
3,195
|
4,039
|
-20.9%
|
Total Industry
Hybrid Sales
|
101,906
|
121,111
|
-15.9%
|
ABOUT CARS.COM
Cars.com is an award-winning online destination for car shoppers
that offers information from consumers and experts to help buyers
formulate opinions on what to buy, where to buy and how much to pay
for a car. Cars.com offers thousands of new and used vehicle
listings, consumer reviews, side-by-side comparison tools, photo
galleries, videos, unbiased editorial content and many other tools
to take the drama out of car shopping. Cars.com puts millions of
car buyers in control of their shopping process with the
information they need to make confident buying decisions. Launched
in June 1998, Cars.com is a division
of Classified Ventures LLC, which is owned by leading media
companies, including A.H. Belo
(NYSE: AHC), Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI), The McClatchy Company
(NYSE: MNI), Tribune Company and The Washington Post Company (NYSE:
WPO).
SOURCE Cars.com