Chinese EV brands Omoda and BYD outsold a number of established rivals including Fiat, Smart, DS and Alfa Romeo in October, as pure electric car sales grew to take a 20.7% market share.
Aggressive marketing and bargain pricing have paid off a treat for the two brands, which have grown significantly after a strong recruitment drive of dealers.
Last month, BYD brought South-East based dealer groups Harwoods and Alan Day onto their franchise roster, with further growth promised across the UK.
In October, Omoda sold 870 cars in the UK and BYD 780, numbers not dissimilar to when MG first established a British dealer network.
Last month, a resurgent MG brand saw its total year-to-date volumes at 67,439, less than 1,000 units behind Vauxhall, with the MG HS a regular top 10 fixture this year.
Chinese brands are capitulating on European and UK ZEV mandates requiring markets to meet market share targets, where their ability to sell cars at lower prices than brands who manufacture electric vehicles in Europe gives them a competitive advantage – a move that led Stellantis to announce a partnership with emerging EV brand Leapmotor at last month’s Paris Motor Show, with Stellantis aiming to help market the brand’s low-cost EVs across Europe.
At present, the UK is behind its ZEV targets despite being the second strongest EV market in Europe in terms of share, and although the latest share figure of 20.7% in October shows an uptick in EV numbers, overall BEV sales remain at 18.1% year-to-date, almost four percentage points off the 2024 target of 22% and a long way off the 28% goal for 2025 set by the Vehicle Emissions Trading Scheme.
Reacting to the data, SMMT CEO Mike Hawes said: ‘Massive manufacturer investment in model choice and market support is helping make the UK the second largest EV market in Europe.
‘That transition, however, must not perversely slow down the reduction of carbon emissions from road transport.
‘EVs already work for many people and businesses, but to shift the entire market at the pace demanded requires significant intervention on incentives, infrastructure and regulation.’
