Details
In the first half of 2023, plug-in electric car registrations in California increased by more than 40% year-over-year, reaching over 220,000 units. This represents a market share of over 24%.
Tesla Model Y and Model 3 were the most popular new cars in California, with over 74,000 and 41,000 registrations respectively. Tesla also remained the dominant player in the BEV segment, with almost 67% market share.
Electric vehicles growth in California
The growth of electric vehicles in California is being driven by a number of factors, including the state’s ambitious climate goals, the availability of incentives, and the increasing range and affordability of electric vehicles.
As the cost of electric vehicles continues to decline and the range of available models continues to grow, we can expect to see even more growth in the electric vehicle market in California and across the United States.
Key points
- New light vehicle registrations in California during the first half of 2023 increased by 11.6 percent year-over-year to 905,752 units.
- Plug-in electric car sales (specifically, all-electric car sales) saw significant growth, outpacing the general market. During the first half of 2023, there were 220,624 new plug-in cars registered in California, accounting for over 24 percent of the total market. The year-over-year growth for plug-in electric car sales is estimated to be more than 40 percent.
- Battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) comprised 21.1 percent of the market share with 191,041 registrations, while plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) held a 3.3 percent market share with 29,583 registrations.
- Non-rechargeable hybrids experienced a substantial decrease in registrations, dropping by about a quarter year-over-year to 38,629 units.
Key points continue
- The top models among all-electric car registrations in California from January to June 2023 were dominated by Tesla vehicles, with the Tesla Model Y leading with 74,765 registrations, followed by the Tesla Model 3 with 41,718 registrations.
- Tesla emerged as a dominant player in the plug-in electric car market, capturing almost 67 percent share of the BEV segment in California.
- In Q2 2023, Tesla surpassed Toyota for the first time in new registrations in California, registering 69,212 units compared to Toyota’s 67,482 units. However, Toyota still held the top position in the year-to-date rankings, with an advantage of about 10,000 units.
- Tesla’s total BEV registrations for Q2 were 69,212 units, which accounted for a 14.6 percent share of the market. In the same quarter, non-Tesla BEVs combined for about 34,304 registrations.
- Tesla’s market share in the US for the first half of 2023 was 4.3 percent, which would translate to approximately 320,000 units compared to the estimated total US market of 7,436,260 units.
- The number of Teslas registered in states outside of California (calculated as the difference between the estimated total US registrations and California registrations) was roughly 196,000.
Conclusion
The popularity of electric vehicles in California is growing rapidly. The number of plug-in electric cars registered in California in the first half of 2023 is more than double the number registered in the same period in 2022. This growth is being driven by a number of factors, including the state’s ambitious climate goals, the availability of incentives, and the increasing range and affordability of electric vehicles.
As the cost of electric vehicles continues to decline and the range of available models continues to grow, we can expect to see even more growth in the electric vehicle market in California and across the United States.
California New Car Dealers Association – Auto Outlook: 2023 Q2