As Predicted - Affordable EV Model Deliveries in America Dropped Dramatically in 2024, But Something Interesting Also Happened

Last January, we examined the affordable EV market in America and realized that the affordable models were very likely going away in 2024. We then penned a story predicting that decline in affordable EV deliveries and did a follow up each quarter. It turns out we were factually right, but an interesting thing also happened in the marketplace that warrants some coverage. We’ll discuss that first.

Automakers Delivered EVs at a Loss Using Lease Deals In 2024
During 2024, every automaker used lease deals, low financing, cash on the dash, free charging programs, free home charger offers, and free Stanley cups to help push EVs out the door and prevent a market catastrophe. Multiple sources, including our own direct communications with the CEO of Hyundai, show that about 80% of all new EV deliveries in 2024 were leases, not purchases. Whether you are pro-EV, anti-EV, or agnostic on EVs does not matter. Automakers invested bajillions of dollars in battery-only vehicles over the past two decades, and if they lose that money, we are all going to end up bailing them out (again). 

The incentives automakers piled on the hood were matched by government incentives. So much so that multiple respected outlets did stories about leasing Nissan Leafs for $20 per month. To keep the EV bandwagon rolling along in 2024 took massive buckets of money poured over each EV that left the lot. What was the result? 92% of new car shoppers still didn't buy an EV. That’s virtually the same as in 2023. The overall industry was lifted by a recovering economy, and EVs did pick up a fraction of a point of market share. So, more EVs were sold in 2024 than in 2023. If you are celebrating the delivery numbers, please pass the Kool-Aid. 

Now, Let’s examine the affordable EV marketplace model by model to see how the models that cost under $35K new did during 2024.

Chevrolet Bolt - Down By 53,418 Units In 2024
America’s most popular and most successful affordable EV model line, the Bolt and Bolt EUV, was killed off by GM due to massive owner popularity. This was the calamity that really made it easy to predict that affordable EVs in America would be sold in lower numbers in 2024 than in 2023. In case you are curious, we will tell you that the Bolt rose 62% from 2022 to 2023. GM killed a popular EV model that was rising sharply in sales. We really miss the Bolt. I named it the Best EV Overall for three years running at another publication for which I create content.
Here are the Bolt/Bolt EUV delivery numbers for the past three calendar years:

• 2024 = 8,267
• 2023 = 62,045
• 2022 = 38,120

Nissan Leaf - Up By 4,077 Units
In 2024, we had another chance to test the top trim of the Nissan Leaf for a week. We love the Leaf. It’s America’s best second car. Catchy, right? And you can go buy one right now for under $30K, including the delivery fee. But you won’t. Nobody is. Everyone loves the fantasy of an “affordable” battery-electric vehicle that is fun to drive, roomy, practical, and reliable, but when one is presented to them, they say, “Yeah, I think I really want an AWD five-passenger SUV.” Nissan delivered 11,226 Leafs in 2024. We had predicted Nissan would deliver 10,000. We hope the Leaf (and Nissan as a company) survive 2025 and have a bright future in America. 

Mazda MX-30 - Down By 100 Units
Did you forget that Mazda sold 100 MX-30 affordable battery-electric vehicles in 2023? We didn’t. For some reason, Mazda took a year off of selling its BEV. Maybe it was because every single review except ours shredded the car in its coverage? 

Hyundai Kona - Down by 1,834 Units
An affordable BEV we love, and have reviewed favorably is the  Hyundai Kona EV. These sell in very small numbers, and only in select regions (of America). For 2025, the Kona SE is still priced just a smidge under $35K. Hyundai was kind enough to tell us that they delivered 5,846 in 2024, down from 7,680 in 2023. Hyundai’s products are among our very favorites. I have named the Ioniq 5 the Best EV Overall In America For 2025 at a different publication I create content for. Let’s hope the Kona EV continues on and picks up its pace.

Kia Niro - Kia opted not to tell us how many Niro EVs they sold. The Niro's entry price is now $41K, so it has drifted beyond our definition of affordable. We estimate deliveries were similar to 2023, and we would peg that at roughly 5K units. 

MINI (BMW) - Unknown - No Reports
We checked out both MINI and BMW’s US media sites, and they have opted not to report US deliveries for 2024 of the affordable MINI. We drove one in 2023 and loved it.

Volvo EX30 - Zero Deliveries?
The automotive media invented the “$35K EX30” for the U.S. market. We reached out to Volvo and asked if any of the starting at $46K EX30 BEVs being advertised were delivered in 2024. Our Volvo support is outstanding, and the reply was 240 units. 

Tesla Model 2, a.k.a Model Q - Zero Delivered 
The EV advocacy press has been talking about an affordable Tesla model slotted in under the Model 3 for a long time. Heck, they even know the price of the imaginary model! Guess what? Smoke and mirrors. There is no Model 2 or Model Q. Zero have been delivered in America because they don't exist. In other news, Tesla dropped its most affordable Model 3 trim during 2024. And Tesla delivered fewer vehicles in America in 2024 than in 2023, according to Cox Automotive. 

VW Sub-$35K EV - Zero - The Media Lied to You
The EV folks also lied to you about the affordable VW model. In other news, the ID.4 found its way to the 10 Most Unreliable Vehicles In America List published by Consumer Reports and was out of production for part of 2024. 

GM’s Affordable Equinox EV LT Trim - 500?  GM Won’t Say How Many Were Delivered
During 2024, GM launched its new Equinox EV. The media lied to you and told you the starting price would be around $30K. Then the media corrected itself and lied to you again, saying the starting price would be $35K. But guess what? The base LT trim was held off the market in favor of trims costing far more during most of 2024. The starting trim was priced at $43,295.

GM did start to trickle forth some base LT trims during Q4. We reached out to GM and asked them how many Equinox EV LT trims they delivered in 2024, but GM declined to say. In fact, they ignored our request for information. If you had a great new affordable EV on sale, wouldn’t you want the media to report on it? We’ve never seen a $35K Equinox EV LT in person. Not at any media events, not in public. We reached out to a couple of our colleagues who write for the popular EV advocacy publications and asked if they had themselves seen a $35K Equinox EV in the flesh, and none had. 

Conclusion - the Affordable EV Isn’t Dead Yet, But It’s On Life Support
Nissan and Hyundai make an affordable battery-electric vehicle you can go out and buy right now. GM may soon as well. However, the delivery volume is way down over prior years. By our count, the entire U.S. market delivery volume of EVs with consumer costs of around $35K in calendar 2024 declined sharply. Not because of inflation. We will just adjust our definition of affordability as inflation takes its annual bite. Rather, automakers don't want to sell affordable EVs because they take huge losses on them. We’ve examined the numbers closely, and our math shows that there were about 26,000 total affordable EV models delivered to American consumers in 2024, down by about 2/3rd the volume of 2023. If we’ve omitted any affordable models, please let us know in the comments, and we will amend the story content. 

Here are the prior stories in this five-part series:

Jan 2024 - Affordable EV Deliveries Will Drop Dramatically in America in 2024 - Here Are The Facts (includes Q1 Update)

July 2024 - 2024 Is the Year the Affordable EV Died In America - Part 3

October 2024 - 2024 Was the Year the Affordable EV Died - Part 4 - Good News and Bad News

Image of Nissan Leaf by John Goreham

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John Goreham is a credentialed New England Motor Press Association member and expert vehicle tester. John completed an engineering program with a focus on electric vehicles, followed by two decades of work in high-tech, biopharma, and the automotive supply chain before becoming a news contributor. He is a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE int). In addition to his eleven years of work at Torque News, John has published thousands of articles and reviews at American news outlets. He is known for offering unfiltered opinions on vehicle topics. You can connect with John on Linkedin and follow his work on our X channel. Please note that stories carrying John's by-line are never AI-generated, but he does employ Grammarly grammar and punctuation software when proofreading.