Sales of electric and plug-in vehicles have surpassed petrol-only registrations for the first time, in a month that also saw China's three biggest sellers capture one in seven of all new cars sold in the UK.
June figures show a watershed in the British car trade. After a spring of record pump prices and electric vehicle prices falling in a crowded marketplace, zero-emission electric vehicle registrations rose 35 percent to nearly 63,950, giving battery-powered vehicles 30 percent of the market.
Plug-in hybrids, which run primarily on battery power with a gasoline engine installed, added another 26,702 sales, up 25 percent year-on-year, for a 12.5 percent share. Among them, the two categories are comfortably selling pure gasoline cars, whose 84,541 registrations reduced their market share below 40 percent for the first time, to 39.7 percent.
The balance is made up of self-charging hybrids, at 14 percent, and diesels, which continue their steady decline after environmental bans and regulations, at just 3.8 percent of new sales, according to industry figures compiled by the Association of Automobile Manufacturers and Traders.
Another highlight this month is the speed with which Chinese manufacturers are winning over British consumers on all types of fuel, at prices that are cutting carmakers to death. In a market with more than 213,000 subscribers, up 11.4 percent, China's three largest exporters sold more than 30,000 vehicles between them, taking more than 14 percent of the market.
MG, the British subsidiary of Shanghai Automotive, bid 4.9 percent, ahead of Toyota, the world's biggest carmaker, and Korean rivals Kia and Hyundai. Chery, which recently signed a deal to build some of its models at Nissan's Sunderland plant, has taken 6.4 percent of its brands Jaecoo and Omoda. BYD, China's largest car company, accounts for just 3 percent.
Many in the industry believe that the end has been reached, as electrified cars are now commonplace and increasingly available on the used market, even if plug-in cars remain out of reach for the two out of five drivers who cannot charge cheaply at home. Public charging costs and infrastructure, tracked by Zapmap, remain a significant barrier for households without access.
Nick Williams, managing director of the transport business at Lloyds Banking Group, said the insolvency picture had changed significantly in the past year.
“Used electric cars are now cheaper compared to petrol ones and the second-hand market has grown by almost a third in the first quarter,” he said. “For households that can't justify a new electric vehicle at list price, a growing number of used vehicles are an entry point.”
That's similar to the record used electric vehicle sales in the first quarter, when used EV purchases rose by nearly a third.
“The other noticeable change is in running costs,” added Williams, “with pump prices up by more than 20p a liter and domestic charging rates remaining stable.”
