It’s no secret that Norway is kicking America’s butt when it comes to electric vehicle adoption, but IHS Markit says EV registrations hit a new record in the United States last year.
However, EVs have a long way to go as their record market share was a tiny 1.8%. That being said, electric vehicles appear to be picking up steam as December 2020 saw the “highest monthly share for EV new registrations” at 2.5%.
Furthermore, IHS Markit noted EVs gained market share despite the coronavirus pandemic which hampered overall vehicle sales. The company went on to say from a retail perspective, “EVs accounted for 2.8% of new vehicle registrations in December … more than tripling EV retail share three years ago.”
This trend is expected to continue as IHS Markit believes electric vehicles will capture a market share of 3.5% in 2021. Longer term, they forecast that number to exceed 10% in 2025.
EV owner loyalty is also on the upswing as “more than half of EV households that return to market acquire another EV.” This is up “substantially from prior years” and it suggests a majority of owners are happy with their EVs and don’t want to return to vehicles powered by internal combustion engines.
In a statement, IHS Markit’s Associate Director of Industry Analysis said “Consumer acceptance of electric vehicles is increasing, though at a modest pace, and now is at record levels.” However, Tom Libby went on to say “We continue to see significant contrasts in EV adoption across different regions of the country, led by the two coasts.”
While middle America has been slow to embrace electric vehicles, they’re set to explode in popularity as automakers are preparing to launch a slew of new models. Among them are the Audi e-tron GT, Cadillac Lyriq, GMC Hummer EV, Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo and the entire Jaguar lineup.
