Electric cars represent 17% of the market share in France
The electric car market in France is showing modest but stable growth, despite a drop in the ecological bonus which went from 5,000 to 4,000 euros, and the end of this aid for vehicles from China. According to data from AAA Data, nearly one in 5 new vehicles sold were electric in April 2024, with electric cars representing 17% of the market share.
France continues to post growth higher than that observed at the European level. According to a report from the International Energy Agency, “ in a context of flattening of the 100% electric market in Europe, the French market maintains a sustained growth trajectory of more than 25% and gains another 3 points of market share, reaching 16% compared to April 2023 “. In detail, thehe month of April 2024 recorded an increase of +14,471 registrations of new electric vehicles compared to April 2023, bringing its total to 146,977 registrations.
An average increase of 2% in the prices of new vehicles
The cost of electric vehicles remains the main obstacle for many motorists. According to AAA Data, the price of new electric vehicles increased by 2%, with an average price, excluding ecological bonus, of 41,998 euros. This price increase is not uniform for all manufacturers. The car manufacturer MG, for example, increased its prices by 10% and up to 45% for Smart. Compared to a gasoline vehicle, an electric car costs on average 14,800 euros more. The “good news” is that the car manufacturers Renault and Peugeot are leading the registrations of new electric vehicles with three city cars: the Peugeot e-208 (360 to 400 km of autonomy) which tops the podium with 3,185 registrations, followed by the Peugeot e-2008 (320 km of autonomy) with 2,164 sales, and in third position the Renault Twingo Electric with 1,842 registrations (190 km of autonomy).
Although the electric car market shows slight growth in France, it is important to remember that it is essentially based on public aid from the State – French taxpayers.. Social leasing is the best example. Victim of its success (50,000 applications accepted, compared to 25,000 originally planned), and with an initial budget of 300 million euros which was therefore finally doubled by the government, this system allows the most modest households to ‘obtain an electric car for around 100 euros per month, the State – taxpayers paying nearly 13,000 euros per vehicle sold. It is very likely that the slight rebound in the electric car market is due to the first deliveries due to social leasing. The French therefore remain as reluctant as ever to make the transition, for financial reasons, but also due to the lack of charging stations, as well as the more limited autonomy of this type of vehicle.
