6.5 millions electric vehicles were sold globally in 2021, with EVs representing 9% of all new car sales during this period. Despite these respectable global sales figures, the global pace of the transition to electric transport is uneven.

From next month, Italian car manufacturer Fiat will only sell electric or hybrid cars in the UK. The move follows Fiat releasing its new 500X and Tipo Hybrid in February 2022. This milestone is a step towards a set of targets outlined by Stellantis, Fiat’s parent company, in its 2021 financial report. Stellantis stated aim is for Fiat’s European range to be fully electrified by 2027, and for all vehicles it sells globally to be electric by 2030. The UK government has said it wants to end sales of petrol and diesel cars by 2030, with hybrids phased out from 2035.

Countries including the UK have now pledged to end the sale of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles and are designing regulations to deliver that outcome - this is a long overdue recognition that markets struggle to address environmental and human health impacts and governments need to take action to force change. As we draft these regulations we need to learn the lessons from previous regulators.

Although companies like Zero are still going, and indeed carving out a sizable niche in the realm of EV motorcycles, there are around 1.2 million motorcycles on our roads, and as of the end of 2020, just 0.4% of them were electric.

This could lead one to the conclusion that electric motorcycles are a failure, a niche toy. But don’t be mistaken, the motorcycle market saw its highest electric market share last month.

Appalled at the Russian atrocities in Ukraine, many western leaders are talking about embargoing Russian oil. In light of this, the UK has announced that it intends to phase-out imports of Russian oil by the end of 2022. The UK does not consume much Russian gas, but we do have a little-known reliance on Russian diesel. This blog examines our dependency on Russian diesel, alongside possible mitigations.

In a world where 51% of any given group is required to initiate change - we are still a long way away from EVs being the default perception of the automobile. With a current total market share of just 1.1% EV, is the “electric revolution” just a techy fad?

At New AutoMotive, we would like to reframe this narrative.

This month, Oxfordshire County Council and Oxford City Council will introduce Britain's first Zero Emission Zone (ZEZ) in Oxford. The pilot scheme will start on 28th February 2022 and apply to a limited number of roads in the city centre. Oxford ZEZ represents a radical change compared to most already existing Clean Air Zones (CAZ) across the country.

2021 has been a watershed moment for EV vehicles, not just in the UK but globally too. Approximately 11.65% of the new car market were EVs.

Due to how fast this sector is developing it is hard to highlight exactly where we will be in 12 months time - but this should be seen as a positive. 2022 will need to not only replicate 2021, but we will need to see a quickening of sales, manufacturing announcements, infrastructure development and other supporting policies to ensure we build on, and accelerate from the progress made last year.

A chart on twitter has divided opinion on how the EV adoption will occur and what it will mean for incumbent manufacturers and new entrants into the automotive market.

It is provocatively labelled the ‘Valley of Death’ for traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) manufacturers who cling too long to their preferred technology, even as EVs start to dominate new sales in key markets such as China, Europe – and now the US.

Mass electrification of transport, much as mass electrification of lighting, is a signal of energy progress – from the inefficient burning of fuels to the more efficient, cheaper and cleaner use of electricity.

It is analogous to the shift from candles and gas lamps to the incandescent light bulb, and now LEDs. 

“We estimate that the portion of the global car market covered by a commitment to phase out petrol and diesel cars has increased by 50%.

There remains more to be done - and we encourage every country that did not sign this commitment, in particular Germany, the USA and China, to set a date to end the sale of polluting cars.”

The Electric Car Count is a tool and data series that gives people information about the UK car market on a monthly basis. We were delighted to see it featured in the Times and the Guardian last month. If you haven’t yet explored the interactive tool, take a look and let us know what you think.

How much do people care about their car’s number plate? Is one generation of people more likely than others to see their registration number as a fashion accessory? This is the story of a mystery that emerged during analysis of big data about UK vehicles. At New AutoMotive, we’re using data about every private registered vehicle to track the UK’s progress switching to electric vehicles and zero emissions road transport.

Cars clock up 255 billion miles every year on UK roads. At present, there is no measure of how many of those miles are travelled in electric vehicles. But the data is available. We have access to that data, and are building a live tool – the New AutoMotive Index – that will measure the UK’s vehicle mileage, break it down by carbon intensity, and allow anyone who needs to know to view it on our website.