IHS: PHEVs To Overtake EVs In Europe Within Two Years

Cameron Aubernon
by Cameron Aubernon

Electric vehicles are doing well in Europe, but their dominance over PHEVs may soon draw to a close.

Automotive News Europe reports sales of EVs in Europe jumped 73 percent to 58,244 units in 2014, while sales of PHEVs climbed 29 percent in the same period to 39,547, according to industry group ACEA. The best-selling EV and PHEV in 2014 were the Nissan Leaf and Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV (15,134 units vs. 19,855), while the largest markets were Norway for EVs (18,090 units), Netherlands for PHEVs (9,938).

According to IHS Automotive senior analyst Ben Scott, PHEVs will overtake EVs this year or in 2016 as far as production goes, forecasting 1.35 million units by 2020, and 2.7 million by 2025. Meanwhile, EV sales will be under 1 million by 2020, as consumers are likely to choose PHEVs for their flexibility in range and use over electric-only vehicles.

Cameron Aubernon
Cameron Aubernon

Seattle-based writer, blogger, and photographer for many a publication. Born in Louisville. Raised in Kansas. Where I lay my head is home.

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  • PHEV makes the most sense. Electricity for your daily commute. Gasoline backup when you need to drive further. EV doesn't make sense for most people and probably won't until recharging stations are more ubiquitous, or charging sessions occur faster. If GM would make a PHEV version of the Malibu - that cost less than $50,000 - it would be a better overall car than the Tesla Model S. Same goes for Ford's Fusion. Same goes for The Dodge Charger (no pun intended).

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    • Mcs Mcs on Apr 14, 2015

      @FormerFF >> Granted, a PHEV has to carry a 300 pound engine around all the time, but most EVs carry extra battery capacity they don’t use on a daily basis as well. There's about a 450 lb difference between the Leaf and the current Volt. Even though I sometimes refer to a PHEVs engine as extra weight I don't want to carry, I really mean much than just the weight. When you add that engine, you add ICEV maintenance issues as well including oil changes, emissions tests, check engine light hassles, fuel pumps, muffler, catalytic converter, increased transmission complexity etc. Better to leave those hassles to it's more demanding garage mates. What a BEV does carry on a long trip is a time penalty. On my typical 100 mile round trips, I gain some time since I charge at either end while either working or sleeping and avoid the gas station trips required by an ICEV. On a trip to Vermont, 100+ miles one way, I'm going to incur a time penalty. It's manageable if you time it for lunch. Fortunately, I don't make trips like that often, so it's not worth the ICE penalties you get with a PHEV. It also helps that I'm in a region that's experiencing an nice influx of level 3 quick chargers. EvGo is moving in with chargers at Simon Malls and ChargePoint will be adding some as well. I now have 5 Level 3 chargers on my 50 mile commute route. I typically don't need them, but it's nice to know they're there. If I lived elsewhere, I might have a different view on PHEVs. That being said, the second car in the house may very well become a PHEV - possibly a 2016 Volt, even with shortcomings I don't like. I think it's still better than the Prius it would replace. However, if the Model 3 was available, a pair of them would be my choice to replace both Prius and Leaf.

  • Lorenzo Lorenzo on Apr 13, 2015

    Whether it's an EV or PHEV, As Louis B. Mayer once said: include me out. My all-electric bill (no gas for heating/cooking) in San Diego was $52.45 for 287 kWh. At 18.275 cents/kWh, regular gas is cheaper.

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    • FormerFF FormerFF on Apr 13, 2015

      Yes, but your gasoline is expensive too. Considering most EV drivers are getting around 4 miles per kwh and gasoline is running around $3.00 - $3.30 in California, that's still less per mile than a Prius,and considerably less than what a similar sized conventional auto can be fueled for. Here in Georgia, gas is $2.30, but electricity is cheap. If I use evening electricity, I pay about 2.5 cents per mile, and overnight charging is ridiculously cheap, somewhere around 1.5 cents per mile.

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