EV Sales See Double-Digit Growth in Q1

By Staff Writer April 15, 2025 529
Sales of the Ford Mach E in the US grew by 61.9 percent in the first two months of 2025 compared with the same period last year. Sales of the Ford Mach E in the US grew by 61.9 percent in the first two months of 2025 compared with the same period last year.

Nearly 300,000 new electric vehicles (EVs) were sold in the first quarter of 2025 in the U.S., according to the latest report from Kelley Blue Book, an increase of 11.4% year over year. Despite many obstacles – and what you may read elsewhere – electric-vehicle sales continue to grow at a healthy pace in the U.S. market. Roughly 7.5% of total new-vehicle sales in the first quarter were electric vehicles, an increase from 7% a year earlier.

The latest numbers show that growth in the EV market is anything but uniform. New models from Acura, Audi, Chevrolet, Honda and Porsche to name a few, are helping drive higher sales. At the same time, established products declined noticeably, as automakers shift market strategy.

General Motors sold a lot of EVs in Q1 of 2025. While GM suffered through painful and slow product launches in 2023 and 2024, the long-promised EVs are starting to flow. More than 30,000 EVs from General Motors brands were sold last quarter, nearly doubling the volume from a year ago and passing both Ford Motor Company and Hyundai Group along the way. And worth noting, Honda and Acura added more than 14,000 EVs to the U.S. market last quarter as well, up from zero a year ago, all courtesy of a short-lived partnership with GM.

GM's Chevrolet Equinox EV.

Stellantis got in the EV game in Q1, with new products from Dodge, Jeep and Fiat. It’s a start. 

But the EV growth story continues to center on market leader Tesla, which saw sales fall further in Q1, down nearly 9% from year-ago levels. As we have noted before, without a significant shift in product strategy, Tesla will continue to shrink in the U.S. market. A refreshed Model Y is launching in the U.S. right now. How that model will affect sales is yet to be seen.

As Cox Automotive Analyst Stephanie Valdez Streaty noted during the Q1 Cox Automotive forecast call late last month, Tesla’s sales peaked in the U.S. in the spring of 2023 when it pushed more than 173,000 EVs onto the roads, and its share of the total U.S. auto market hit 5%. That was then. In Q1 2025, the EV pioneer was heading back to earth: Sales of 128,000, down 26% from the peak and with a market share closer to 3%. What’s next for Tesla?  We’ll let the market decide. 

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Last modified on Tuesday, 22 April 2025 09:59