BYD Seal chases down Model 3, as Australian EV sales cool and customers turn to ICE

The uptake of electric vehicles has cooled in April, 2024, with sales of battery electric vehicles making up just 6.4% of the total new car sales in Australia, down from nearly 10 per cent in the two previous months.

New data from the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) shows that 6,194 sales of all vehicles were battery electric cars, which is down from the highs of over 10,000 sales in the months of February and March. Overall new car sales are at record highs, with hybrids and large SUVs proving popular to Australian buyers.

Polestar, which no longer reports its EV sales to FCAI, said it sold 100 EVs in April. The share of EVs so far in 2024 is 7.8 per cent, which is above the average of 7.1 per cent in the same period a year ago, but its growth rate has stalled.

Tesla, which usually ramps up sales at the end of a quarter, fell back sharply from its March peak, and accounted for just over one third of total EV sales, a market it usually dominates, although the Model Y led the EV charts with 1,166 sales in the month.

It was followed closely by the Model 3 electric sedan, with 911 sales in April, but it is being chased down by the new BYD Seal, which fell just 100 sales short of catching the refreshed Model 3.

The MG4 also had a good month with 576 sales as recent price cuts announced in March help it surpass the Atto 3 electric SUV to take fourth place. The MG4 performed significantly better than the its competitors in the sub-$40,000 market, the BYD Dolphin and the GWM Ora.

As for the overall market, the FCAI said Australians bought more than 401,000 new cars in the first four months of 2024, setting a new record. In April, sales of hybrid cars totalled 16,466, and plug in hybrid sales totalled 1,300, more than doubling their market share from 7.5 per cent in the same month a year ago to 18.3 per cent.

The best-selling EVs in April 2024 were:

• Tesla Model Y – 1166 sales
• Tesla Model 3 – 911 sales
• BYD Seal – 811 sales
• MG MG4 – 576 sales
• BYD Atto 3 – 418 sales
• BMW i4 – 206 sales
• BYD Dolphin – 181 sales
• Volvo XC40 Recharge – 140 sales
• Kia EV6 – 132 sales
• Hyundai Ioniq 5 – 113 sales
• Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV – 113 sales
• Polestar 2 – 100 sales
• GWM Ora – 80 sales
• Toyota bz4X – 74 sales
• Kia EV9 – 61 sales
• Mustang Mach-e 42 sales
• Cupra Born – 41 sales
• Hyundai Ioniq 6 – 37 sales
• Mercedes EQS – 25 sales
• LDV edliver7 van – 21 sales
• Mercedes EQB – 15 sales
• Nissan Leaf – 11 sales
• Audi e-Tron – 9 sales
• Mercedes EQC – 6 sales
• Jaguar i-Pace – 1 sale
• LDV T60 EV – 0 sales.

The Driven is waiting to hear back from various manufacturers for sales of some EV models and this list will be updated once they’re received.

EV sales may rebound in May following big price cuts from Tesla for both its Model 3 and Model Y, and BYD also has a demonstrator sales event which could deliver more sales in May.