China: Plug-In Car Sales Climbed To Over 400,000 In May 2022

As the COVID-19 lockdowns come to an end, China is once again unlocking full speed of electrification.

According to EV Volumes’ data, shared by Jose Pontes, some 403,029 new passenger plug-in electric cars were registered in China in May, which is 109% more than a year ago. The result represents also more than half of the global plug-in market.

The share of plug-in cars increased to 31%, including 23% for all-electric cars. BEVs remain in the majority, but PHEVs noted a higher growth rate (up 187% vs. 91% in the case of BEVs).

Results for the month:

• BEVs: about *298,000 and 23% share
• PHEVs: about *105,000 and 8% share
• Total: 403,029 (up 109%) and 31% share

* estimated

So far this year, over 1.8 million new passenger plug-in electric cars were registered in China.

• BEVs: about *1.44 million and 20% share
• PHEVs: about *0.36 million and 5% share
• Total: 1,807,337 and 25% share

* estimated from the market share

For reference, in 2021, the total plug-in electric car registrations increased by about 153% year-over-year to over 3.2 million (from 1.27 million in 2020). In 2022, the total volume might reach 5-6 million, according to some forecasts.

The Chinese plug-in market not only expands very quickly but is becoming more and more dominated by Chinese models. At least in May, the first non-Chinese model (the locally produced Tesla Model Y) was #16.

Top ten for the month:

1. Wuling Hong Guang MINI EV: 34,037
2. BYD Song (BEV + PHEV): 31,989
3. BYD Han (BEV + PHEV): 23,934
4. BYD Qin Plus (BEV + PHEV): 17,943
5. BYD Yuan Plus BEV: 11,500
6. Li Xiang One EREV: 11,496
7. GAC Aion S: 10,503
8. Chery eQ1 / Little Ant: 9,754
9. Chery QQ Ice Cream: 9,243
10. Changan Benni EV: 8,485

* BEV and PHEV versions of the same models were counted togheter in the source.

With the growing position of BYD, many wonder whether Tesla will be able to return to the top after lockdowns derailed Shanghai’s production in April and part of May.

BYD is now selling more than 100,000 cars regularly and has become the third most popular brand in China.

Results year-to-date:

1. Wuling Hong Guang MINI EV – 161,579
2. BYD Song (BEV + PHEV) – 127,304
3. BYD Qin Plus (BEV + PHEV) – 109,229
4. Tesla Model Y – 81,125
5. BYD Han (BEV + PHEV) – 71,786
6. BYD Dolphin – 48,138
7. BYD Tang (BEV + PHEV) – 47,691
8. Li Xiang One EREV – 47,380
9. Chery QQ Ice Cream – 44,434
10. Changan Benni EV – 41,298

The list of brands, once again, reveals a pretty strong position for BYD – no change compared to the previous month.

Top plug-in brands by share in the plug-in segment year-to-date:

• BYD: 27.9%
• SAIC-GM-Wuling: 10.1%
• Tesla: 6.6%
• Chery: 4.9%
• GAC: 4.2%

Top plug-in automotive groups by share in the plug-in segment year-to-date:

• BYD: 27.9%
• SAIC: 13.7%
  including SAIC-GM-Wuling joint venture (between SAIC, GM and Liuzhou Wuling Motors)
• Tesla: 6.6%
• Chery: 5.0%
• Geely-Volvo: 4.6%
• Volkswagen Group: 3.6%