Tesla Model 3 To Become Best Selling BEV 2021 In Germany, France And UK

As per the latest data available, the Tesla Model 3 is on the path to become the best selling BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle) both in Germany and France, beating local brands for the first time. It is also the best selling BEV in the UK.

"Looking at the 2021 ranking, the #1 Tesla Model 3 kept a safe distance over the #2 Renault Zoe, and unless a big surprise comes in December, we should see the Model 3 win its first best seller trophy in France. If so, the interesting fact is that the Tesla Model 3 will be the best selling EV this year both in Germany and France, beating their domestic competitors for the first time", according to an article in cleantechnica by Jose Pontes.

"… add in the fact that the Tesla Model 3 is also the best selling EV in the United Kingdom, and it is quite a big deal that Tesla’s midsize sedan is going to be crowned the king of the three markets that make up the backbone of the European EV market.", he also stated in the same article.

Even though in November the Tesla Model 3 took the third place in France with 1,500 units (where the 1st place was for the Dacia Spring with 2,895 units sold and the 2nd place for the Renault Zoe with 2,189 units), the Tesla Model 3 actually sold 20,952 units overall in the January-November 2021 period in France, followed by Renault Zoe with 20,041 units, and by the Peugeot 208 EV with 16,260 units sold.

It is worth mentioning that we are not talking about cars that belong to the same category: there is a big difference between a Tesla Model 3 and a Dacia Spring in terms of price, range, performance, security, technology, and many other parameters; the same logic applies to a comparison between a Model 3 and a Renault Zoe. Having said that, we are only comparing numbers of units sold, as per the charts and data from the above mentioned sources.

The Dacia Spring Electric is equipped with a single electric motor rated at 44 hp (45 PS; 33 kW) and 125 N⋅m (12.7 kg⋅m; 92.2 lb⋅ft) of torque. The claimed acceleration figure of 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) is 19.1 seconds. The electric motor is powered by a 27.4 kWh lithium-ion battery, permitting a claimed range of 230 km (143 mi) on the combined WLTP cycle and supports fast charging at a rate of up to 30 kW from a CCS DC charger. Moreover, the Dacia Spring was awarded a one star rating in the Euro NCAP crash test published in December 2021. Euro NCAP said the testing highlighted "… a high risk of life-threatening injuries for driver chest and rear passenger head in frontal crash tests and marginal chest protection in side impact."

As for the Renault Zoe, the first production car had a 22 kWh lithium-ion battery pack that delivered a range between 210 km (130 mi) and 240 km (150 mi) under the NEDC cycle. In September 2016, Renault announced the introduction of new higher range model with a 41 kWh lithium-ion battery, increasing the range to 400 km (250 mi) under the NEDC cycle. In mid 2018 a new model with increased motor power of 80 kW (110 hp), was announced as the ZE 40 R110. In mid 2019, the ZE 50 R135 was announced, with a 55 kWh battery pack (52 usable) and 100 kW (130 hp) motor, and CCS charging; the final production-ready model was shown at the Frankfurt Motor Show and deliveries started in January 2020.

Going back to the numbers presented by Jose Pontes from cleantechnica, they say in the article that "… looking at the 2021 ranking, the #1 Tesla Model 3 kept a safe distance over the #2 Renault Zoe, and unless a big surprise comes in December, we should see the Model 3 win its first best seller trophy in France. If so, the interesting fact is that the Tesla Model 3 will be the best selling EV this year both in Germany and France, beating their domestic competitors for the first time."

One last, interesting remark made is "… add in the fact that the Tesla Model 3 is also the best selling EV in the United Kingdom, and it is quite a big deal that Tesla’s midsize sedan is going to be crowned the king of the three markets that make up the backbone of the European EV market."

So, again, if nothing strange happens between now and the end of December, the Tesla Model 3 should become the best selling car in the top 3 European markets, France, Germany and the UK.

All images courtesy of Tesla Inc.

Nico Caballero is the VP of Finance of Cogency Power, specializing in solar energy. He also holds a Diploma in Electric Cars from Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, and enjoys doing research about Tesla and EV batteries. He can be reached at @NicoTorqueNews on Twitter. Nico covers Tesla and electric vehicle latest happenings at Torque News.