Tesla Model 3 Drives Canada's EV Sales Up 50% In Q1 2020

Featured image: Nick Miotke / Roadshow

The popularity of EVs and, in particular, Tesla is growing every year, as evidenced by the results of sales. Canada showed huge sales growth in the first quarter of 2020.

Based on data from Electric Mobility Canada, Drive Tesla Canada reports that Q1 2020 11 978 Zero Emission Vehicles (ZEVs) sold, up 50% year-over-year.

Q1 2020 Highlights:

• 11,978 ZEV sales in Q1 2020, up 49% year-over-year.
• 5.6% of new vehicles sold in March were ZEV, a new record.
• More than 1% of vehicles in British Columbia and Quebec are ZEVs.

The two provinces with the highest sales are also the two provinces with the largest discounts available for ZEV purchases. British Columbia, which has a discount of $ 3,000 rebate for eligible vehicles, increased sales by 37%, and a total of 3,726 units were sold. Quebec, with a provincial discount of $ 8,000, sold 5,697 ZEV in the first quarter, an increase of 50%.

In other provinces, where it seems that the transition to ZEV is slow, you can still see a significant increase in sales, about three times. New Brunswick was leading with 260% growth in the first quarter of 2020, sales in Manitoba increased by 205%, and in Saskatchewan - by 161%.

Despite the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, ZEV sales set another record. March 2020 was the best-ever month for Zero Emission Vehicles in terms of market share, representing 5.6% of Canadian auto sales.

Source: Electric Mobility Canada

Quebec continued to represent almost half (48%) of Canadian ZEV sales, and there are now more than 70,000 Zero Emission Vehicles on the province’s roads.

The leader was the Tesla Model 3, which sold 4,025 cars, which is more than all the best-selling models combined that were sold in Canada during this period. The closest competitor among full-electric cars was Chevy Bolt, which was able to sell just 1,031 units. The best-selling hybrid plug-in was the Toyota Prius Prime with 1,288 sales.

Electric Mobility Canada is pleased to outline the continued growth of Zero Emission Vehicles (ZEVs) in Canada. As always, conclusions are based upon independent analysis that includes data from IHS Markit Canada and other sources.