Riding a growing wave of interest in electric vehicles (EVs), the Tesla Model 3 became the second best selling car in the United Kingdom (UK) for 2021, even when taking gas-powered cars into account.
Not only was the Model 3 the second best selling car with 34,783 units sold, UK customers bought more EVs in 2021 than they did in the previous five years combined (190,727 units).
That was enough to give EVs an 18.5% share of new car registrations in 2021.
Tesla Model 3 overtakes Nissan Leaf to become most popular EV in the UK
According to data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), only the Vauxhall Corsa, a 4-door hatchback that starts as low as £12,390 (~$21,400 CAD) was able to outsell the Model 3 with 40,914 units.
When it comes to pure EV sales, the Model 3 beat out the likes of the Kia Niro, VW ID.3, Nissan Leaf, and others to claim the top spot.
In what is becoming a familiar story, EVs bucked the trend of lagging car sales. A total of 1.65 million new cars were registered in the UK last year, up slightly from COVID impacted 2020 (+1.0%), but 28.7% less than in 2019.
