The electric vehicle market softened in April following March’s rebound, with performance diverging between the new and used segments, according to Cox Automotive’s Stephanie Valdez Streaty, director of industry insights. In her recent edition of Topline Auto Insights, she reports new EV sales declined amid broader weakness in overall vehicle demand, even as elevated fuel prices renewed consumer focus on efficiency. Used EV sales, meanwhile, continued to expand, supported by improving inventory availability and a growing pool of off-lease vehicles.
Recent Cox Automotive research indicates that while higher gas prices are driving increased interest in fuel-efficient vehicles, most shoppers continue to gravitate toward fuel-efficient gas vehicles and hybrids rather than EVs. For many consumers, the path of least resistance remains improved efficiency within familiar powertrains. Taken together, April’s results point to an EV market settling into a more normalized pace and one shaped increasingly by affordability, availability and disciplined inventory management across segments.
Used EV sales reached 42,080 units in April, up 16.7% year over year and 3% month over month, pushing used EV market share to a record 2.8%, the reported stated. Tesla again led with 16,174 units sold through non-Tesla dealers, followed by Hyundai, Chevrolet, Ford and BMW.
After March’s unusually strong surge, April reflected a more normalized pace of growth. Month-over-month gains were broad-based, with many brands posting increases, although declines among several higher-volume makes tempered the overall advance. Even so, the strong year-over-year gain underscores continued expansion in the used EV market as inventory improves and more vehicles age into the secondary market.
