France saw a new EV record high of 26.9% market share in June, up from 19.8% year on year. Full electrics grew from 12.8% to 17.4% share, while plugin hybrids grew from 7.0% to 9.4%. Overall auto volume was 190,847 units, up some 12% YoY, though still below long term norms, and with almost all the growth coming from plugins.
The bestselling BEV in June was again the Tesla Model Y, just ahead of its sibling, the Tesla Model 3.
June’s combined plugin result of 26.9% comprised 17.4% full electrics (BEVs), and 9.4% plugin hybrids (PHEVs). These figures compare with 19.8%, 12.8%, and 7.0%, a year ago.
In terms of volumes, BEVs grew 52% YoY to 33,279 units — a new record — while PHEVs grew 50% to 17,969. This is the strongest YoY volume growth for plugins since late 2021, and represents over 90% of June’s headline YoY auto market volume growth.
Combined combustion-only share hit a new record low of 45.0% in June (from 54.6% YoY), with both Petrol share (35.8%) and Diesel share (9.3%) hitting record lows.
France bestsellers
France’s new EV record high was helped by Tesla’s combined Model Y and Model 3 volumes, which hit an all time high for the brand in June, with 8,301 units delivered. This is a dramatic up-tick from their 3,807 combined units a year ago.
The Tesla Model Y was June’s bestselling BEV, with 4,335 units. It is also now France’s 8th best selling vehicle overall in 2023, year to date.
In the June BEV rankings, the Tesla Model 3 took second spot, and the Fiat 500e took third.
In 4th place was the MG4 (its highest ever ranking), and in 5th was the ever-popular Dacia Spring (the 14th overall bestseller in France, YTD).
The Renault Megane put in its best monthly volume since December, at 2,377 units, taking 6th spot. This makes for six BEV models with over 2,000 monthly sales in June, a new record. With the Peugeot e-208 not far behind, can we expect that to increase to 7 models in September?
With limited BEV model data this month, we can’t say for sure whether any newcomers made debuts in the French market. We can confirm that the still new Jeep Avenger continued to grow monthly volume (441 units, from a 334 debut last month), placing it in 16th spot in June.
Let’s now look at the trailing 3 month volumes:
Here, the top 3 spots are no surprise, with regular favourites the Tesla Model Y, Dacia Spring, and Fiat 500, representing.
Despite coming 2nd in June, the Tesla Model 3 is “only” in 4th in the above chart, due to still being subject to shipping lulls in the first part of each quarter. This variability is avoided by the Model Y, which is now made locally in Europe and thus able to deliver in more steady monthly volumes.
There are no huge moves in the top 20 ranking this time around, and as the French BEV market matures, we can expect dramatic rank changes to become more rare. However, we should see the new Jeep Avenger joining the top 20 next month, if it stays on its recent trajectory.
Outlook
Parts of France are suffering from social unrest, and the country’s economic situation is lacklustre, with economic (and wage) stagnation combined with price inflation faced by consumers, and youth employment of 17%, all surely contributing to frustrations.
Compared to other sectors of the economy, the auto industry has seen relatively strong YoY growth, with almost all of that growth coming from increased sales of plugins, especially BEVs. Long term running costs of BEVs, and total cost of ownership, are still advantageous compared to equivalent ICE vehicles, and those consumers who can still afford to be in the market for a new vehicle are increasingly turning towards BEVs.
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