Published April 5, 2012
The HybridCars.com monthly sales dashboard is a collaboration of HybridCars.com and Baum & Associates, a Michigan-based market research firm focusing on automotive issues including the hybrid and electric vehicle market.
Toyota had buyers lined up and did quite well with 911 Prius PHV units delivered in less than a full month.
The market demand for hybrids and plug-in cars exceeded all months prior, with total March hybrid sales at 48,206 units compared to 36,222 last month, and 4,161 plug-in vehicles sold compared to February's 1,662 sold.
The top-selling Prius hybrid – the three versions counted under "Hybrid" section, not including the plug-in PHV – hit an all-time high. Fuel prices drove this result, as did the availability of the new variants, the V and the C along with the original Liftback model. Fuel economy sells, but having vehicles that meet the needs of consumers (smaller and larger sizes) is also critical.
The Prius plug-in may be a strong success with 911 units in a partial first month available primarily in California. It is a comparatively low cost plug built on an established brand, and combines the allure of a plug-in with lower cost, albeit with reduced battery only range compared to the Chevrolet Volt.
And speaking of which, the Volt did exceptionally well even though fleet sales were negligible. As a result, the strong sales of the Volt reduced inventories dramatically, necessitating an earlier restart of production of the vehicle. GM's marketing effort continues and the strong sales provide some good news for the product, which GM hopes will result in a change in the "story line" around the Volt.
The growth rate of these vehicles is far above the rate of the market as a whole, with respect to March vs. February 2012, March 2012 vs. March 2011, and YTD 2011 vs YTD 2010.
Diesels also saw an increase in sales for March of 11,642 total vehicles sold compared 9,054 in February 2012, and so it was a solid month in all.
March 2012 Hybrid Car Sales Numbers
Hybrids sold in the U.S. (March 2012): 48,206
Hybrid Take-Rate: 3.44%
U.S. hybrid sales for March 2012
| Model | Units | vs. last month | vs. March 2011 | CYTD | vs. CYTD 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toyota Prius | 27,800 | 35.0% | 49.4% | 59,944 | 40.1% |
| Toyota Camry | 5,404 | 44.1% | 276.1% | 11,270 | 242.6% |
| Lexus CT 200h | 2,223 | 35.5% | 1.1 | 4,888 | 122.3% |
| Hyundai Sonata | 2,095 | 33.6% | 414.8 | 4,968 | 1,120.5% |
| Chevy Malibu Hybrid | 1,416 | 304.6% | n/a | 1,761 | 35,240.0% |
| Kia Optima | 1,201 | -17.4% | n/a | 2,831 | n/a |
| Buick LaCrosse | 1,117 | -50.8% | n/a | 3,146 | n/a |
| Ford Fusion | 1,009 | -9.1% | -31.2 | 2,730 | -28.4% |
| Honda Insight | 1,032 | 33.5% | -62.9% | 2,297 | -62.1% |
| Lexus RX400/450h | 992 | 20.1% | -31.0% | 2,571 | -23.2% |
| Honda Civic | 906 | 22.3% | 105.4% | 2,096 | 28.9% |
| Linc. MKZ Hybrid | 626 | 49.4% | 1.8% | 1,298 | -5.9% |
| Toy. Highlander | 607 | 28.1% | -23.8% | 1,443 | -34.2% |
| Honda CR-Z | 536 | 15.0% | -68.2% | 1,365 | -62.1% |
| Lexus HS 250h | 261 | 74.0% | 13.5% | 563 | -19.5% |
| Ford Escape | 162 | -62.7% | -86.4% | 941 | -62.5% |
| Buick Regal | 135 | -50.4% | n/a | 335 | n/a |
| Porsche Cayenne | 124 | -9.5% | -8.8% | 373 | -20.1% |
| Cad. Escalade | 105 | 84.2% | -17.3% | 196 | -37.2% |
| Chevy Silverado | 78 | 85.7% | -17.0% | 141 | -57.7% |
| GMC Yukon Hybrid | 65 | 41.3% | -19.8% | 135 | -30.1% |
| Chevy Tahoe | 57 | 18.8% | -18.6% | 123 | -32.0% |
| BMW Hybrid 7 | 54 | -10.0% | 42.1% | 144 | 37.1% |
| Infiniti M35h | 47 | -19.0% | n/a | 140 | n/a |
| Porsche Panamera S | 43 | 26.5% | n/a | 116 | n/a |
| Mazda Tribute | 29 | 38.1% | -14.7% | 74 | -30.8% |
| VW Touareg Hybrid | 19 | 5.6% | -56.8% | 73 | -56.8% |
| GMC Sierra | 16 | 33.3% | -38.5% | 32 | -52.2% |
| Altima | 18 | -18.2% | -96.7% | 67 | -94.7% |
| Lexus GS450h | 12 | -40.0% | -50.0% | 57 | -25.0% |
| Mercedes S400HV | 10 | -64.3% | -60.0% | 49 | -34.7% |
| Lexus LS600hL | 5 | -16.7% | -44.4% | 19 | -20.8% |
| BMW X6 | 2 | n/a% | -60.0% | 2 | -89.5% |
| Mercedes ML450 | 0 | 26.9% | n/a | 13 | 1,200.0% |
| All hybrids | 48,206 | 33.1% | 39.6% | 106,207 | 37.2% |
| All vehicles | 1,400,100 | 22.2% | 12.7% | 3,456,120 | 13.4% |
March 2012 Plug-in Electric Car Sales Numbers
Plug-in cars sold in the U.S. (March 2012): 4,171
Plug-in Take-Rate: 0.30%
U.S. plug-in electric sales for March 2012
| Model | Units | vs. last month | vs. March 2011 | CYTD | vs. CYTD 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chevrolet Volt | 2,289 | 123.8% | 276.5% | 3,915 | 223.6% |
| Prius PHV | 911 | n/a | n/a | 911 | n/a |
| Nissan LEAF | 579 | 21.1% | 94.3% | 1,733 | 283.4% |
| BMW Active E | 326 | 183.5% | n/a | 553 | n/a |
| Mitsubishi i | 56 | 27.3% | n/a | 136 | n/a |
| Smart ED | 0 | -100.0% | -100.0% | 2 | -96.2% |
| All plug-in cars | 4,161 | 150.4% | 349.4% | 7,250 | 323.0% |
| All vehicles | 1,400,100 | 22.2% | 12.7% | 3,456,120 | 13.4% |
March 2012 Clean Diesel Car Sales Numbers
Clean Diesels sold in the U.S. (March 2012): 11,642
Diesel Take-Rate: 0.83%
U.S. clean diesel sales for March 2012
| Model | Units | vs. last month | vs. March 2011 | CYTD | vs. CYTD 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VW Jetta | 5,047 | 45.7% | 6.2% | 11,021 | -0.7% |
| Passat Diesel | 2,052 | 5.8% | n/a | 5,229 | n/a |
| Volkswagen Golf | 937 | 40.1% | 5.5% | 2,270 | 8.6% |
| BMW X5 | 875 | 44.2% | 57.9% | 1,889 | 8.9% |
| Mercedes E320 | 441 | 48.5% | 77.8% | 912 | 44.3% |
| Mercedes ML320 | 624 | 43.2% | 114.4% | 1,585 | 105.6% |
| Mercedes GL320 | 435 | -28.8% | 2.1% | 1,570 | 44.6% |
| VW Touareg | 404 | -3.3% | 100.0% | 1,218 | 122.3% |
| Audi A3 | 362 | 43.1% | 45.4% | 1,008 | 11.5% |
| Audi Q7 | 254 | 85.4% | -31.9% | 701 | -31.7% |
| BMW 335d | 110 | -22.5% | -62.2% | 581 | -21.6% |
| Mercedes S350 | 68 | -23.4% | n/a | 186 | n/a |
| Mercedes R320 | 33 | 83.3% | -48.4% | 90 | -34.3% |
| Jeep Gr Cherokee | 0 | n/a | -100.0% | - | -100.0% |
| All clean diesels | 11,642 | 28.6% | 39.6% | 28,260 | 35.1% |
| All vehicles | 1,400,100 | 22.2% | 12.7% | 3,456,120 | 13.4% |
