Nissan LEAF is Europe’s best-selling EV as Japanese brands dominate UK car electrification

The new Nissan LEAF is the most popular electric car in Europe in 2018 as Japanese brands lead the way in the electrification of cars.

The new Nissan LEAF is doing good business in Europe since its launch, and so far in 2018 it’s been the best-selling EV across the whole of Europe as car buyers slowly get turned on to EVs, plug-ins and hybrids.

So far, Nissan has shifted 26,000 units of the new LEAF in Europe, and in Norway, Europe’s EV capital, it’s the best-selling car so far in 2018 bar none.

But it’s not just Nissan doing well with electrification, it’s Japanese brands more generally which are driving the uptake of plug-ins and hybrids too, unsurprisingly with Toyota playing a big part.

In the UK, sales of the hybrid Toyota Yaris are up by almost 50 per cent this year, sales of the hybrid Lexus NX – the biggest-selling Lexus in the UK – are up by almost 25 per cent and sales of the plug-in Prius have more than doubled, and the Nissan LEAF is accounting for 40 per cent of all EV sales in the UK.

That said, AFVs (Alternative Fuelled Vehicles) still don’t count for a major part of new car sales in the UK – around 6 per cent – although they are growing strongly. Well, hybrid and plug-in hybrid sales are, although pure EVs not so much.

So far in 2018, sales of EVs are up by a very modest 1.3 per cent, plug-in hybrid sales are up by 30.7 per cent and ‘self charging’ Hybrids are up by 22.6 per cent, for total AFV sales of to the end of September 2018 of 114,258.

Top 5 Hybrid Car Sales UK

1. Toyota Yaris
2. Toyota CH-R
3. Toyota Auris
4. BMW 3 Series
5. Mitsubishi Outlander