EV Market Share: New Cars
The new passenger car segment is evolving faster than any other New Zealand automotive market segment.
This report includes new passenger cars registered each month.
Belonging to the broader light vehicle market, this segment does not include used imports, light trucks (utes), or light vans.
See the light vehicle market share report.
EV market share snapshot
New Car Registrations
March 2024
Percentage that were EVs
Market share by fuel type
The fuel type of new cars registered in NZ in the most recent month.
New car drilldown
New passenger cars are grouped by fuel type and car brand down to individual model numbers.
Click chart to drilldown
- BEV – Battery-electric Vehicle
- PHEV – Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle
- The outer ring shows the market share of the entire new car market.
- Drilling into a powertrain segment shows the brand market share within that segment.
Market share by fuel type over time
New Zealand’s new car segment is undergoing a rapid transition.
The combination of a rebate scheme and an increasing number of EV models with lower prices changed the car market.
Rebates on new EVs began in July 2021, followed by a more comprehensive scheme in April 2022. The scheme ended in December 2023.
EV annual market share
Both battery electric and plug-in hybrid cars are increasing in market share.
EV monthly market share
The new electric car market experienced slow growth until the introduction of the Clean Car Discount in July 2021. The scheme ended in December 2023, leading to a spike in EV registrations, followed by a slump.
New cars are just one segment of the market
New passenger cars are showing a rapid transition to some form of electrification.
However, this is not reflected in the broader light vehicle market.
Around half of the vehicles added to the monthly register are used imports (manufactured and purchased in one country and later imported and sold into NZ as used vehicles).
Most of these used imports are petrol or hybrid vehicles (except for the Nissan Leaf EV). This reflects the Japanese Domestic Market, NZ’s primary used vehicle source market.
Another significant segment is the light commercial class of vehicles.
In this segment, over 75% of vehicles are utes (light trucks), most of which are diesel. The market share of these combustion vehicles has remained unchanged.
