Beyond the Monthly Buzz: Tracing the True Evolution of Electrification in the UK

“Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow, creeps in this petty pace from day to day”, which is a pretentious way of saying that sometimes the sound and fury of monthly EV sales figures and their selective dissection sometimes signifies nothing. Or if not quite nothing - after all, that’s why New AutoMotive produces its monthly Electric Car Count, Electric Van Count and all new Global EV Tracker -  you can still risk losing the site of the bigger picture. 

That’s why the chart below from our State of the Switch 2024 report gives us some much needed perspective. Until 2017 diesel and petrol vehicles were absolutely dominant, enjoying a fairly equal market share. Following Dieselgate in 2015 and a growing realisation that premature death from respiratory, heart and lung complaints was actually not OK, diesel sales began a steep decline. 

Initially this saw petrol’s market share increase at a comparable rate until 2020, after which  both hybrid and battery electric sales began to eat into the windfall it had experienced. 

2023 saw petrol fall below that pre 2017 market share. Hybrid and electric sales combined now exceed petrol vehicle sales. 

Historic market share by fuel types.

There is no going back to petrol and diesel. Cars did not reach parity with horse-and-cart only for a mass public change of heart and a return to traps, gigs and buggies. When digital photography overtook analogue it was too late for a Kodak fightback. 

The only question now is how quickly we can wean ourselves off the transition technology of hybrid vehicles and onto all electric mobility. 

Whilst the market share of battery electric vehicles plateaued in 2023, their sales sharply increased, holding their own in a growing market. And with the ZEV mandate’s implementation in 2024, it is likely that the market will again rise in the coming year.

Read more in State of the Switch 2024