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These were the best-selling EV brands in the U.S. in Q1

Tesla remained the clear market leader in Q1, while Chevrolet and others saw substantial sales growth with the introduction of new models.

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Credit: Tesla

A recent report has revealed the latest estimates on electric vehicle (EV) sales for the first quarter of the year, with Tesla and Ford landing the top two spots, while GM’s brands saw the most sales growth.

On Thursday, Cox Automotive released data estimates for the U.S. EV market in Q1 2025, showing that Tesla remained the clear market leader among brands, while Ford, GM, BMW, and Hyundai made up the rest of the top five. The report estimated 296,227 EVs sold overall, marking an 11.4 percent increase year over year, and bringing new-vehicle EV sales to around 7.5 percent of the market.

Cox notes that this is still a steady increase from 7 percent of the market during Q1 last year, despite headwinds created by the Trump administration’s tariff war.

“The year certainly started strong, but the road ahead will be anything but smooth,” said Valdez Streaty, Cox Automotive analyst.

Tesla outsold the next top 10 brand names combined in Q1 with 128,100 units, though sales declined 8.6 percent year over year for the brand. Ford was the second-best-selling brand with 22,550 units sold, representing an 11.5 percent increase year over year.

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Meanwhile, GM’s Chevrolet brand saw a 114.2 percent increase in sales from the first quarter of 2024 with 19,186, as led by the Chevy Equinox EV. The rest of the top 10 was made up, in order, by VW (9,564), Honda (9,561), Kia (8,656), Rivian (8,553), and Cadillac (7,972).

Brands such as Porsche, Toyota, and GMC joined the Chevy brand in seeing substantial sales growth, representing 249 percent, 196 percent, and 183 percent increases year over year, respectively.

It’s worth noting that multiple automakers own different brands, such as Chevrolet, GMC, and Cadillac being owned by GM, Audi being owned by VW, or Stellantis owning Jeep and Dodge, among other examples still.

EV Sales Volume Change by Brand: Q1 2025 versus Q1 2024

Credit: Cox Automotive

New Entries: EV Sales Volume in Q1 2025

Credit: Cox Automotive

READ MORE ON EV SALES: Tesla vs. competition: How many BEVs did OEMs sell in the U.S. in 2024?

Tesla doesn’t break out sales data by region, though the company recently reported delivering 336,681 units globally in the first quarter, representing a 13-percent drop from Q1 2024.

While it’s not a surprise that Tesla’s market share steadily declines as more competition enters the market, recent pressure on Elon Musk for his involvement with the Trump administration has, if nothing else, caused some automakers to try to poach Tesla owners with special trade-ins and other promotions.

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Tesla has also been rolling out the refreshed Model Y, and the potential effects of the transition to it from the legacy model may play a role, though future quarters will show a better glimpse at the impact of the redesigned vehicle’s arrival.

At the time of writing, Cox Automotive has also not yet responded to Teslarati’s request for clarification on which brands are included in the “additional EV models” category. However, we expect these to include low-volume, luxury, and other niche EV brands, such as Lucid Motors. The publication also says the data overall excludes super exotics.

You can see EV sales ranked by brand below, check out the full data from Cox Automotive here, or read the publication’s press release on the report here.

Mass-market EV sellers in Q1 2025, ranked by brand

  1. Tesla: 128,100
  2. Ford: 22,500
  3. Chevrolet: 19,186
  4. BMW:13,538
  5. Hyundai: 12,843
  6. VW: 9,564
  7. Honda: 9,561
  8. Kia: 8,656
  9. Rivian: 8,553
  10. Cadillac: 7,972
  11. Nissan: 6,471
  12. Audi: 5,905
  13. Toyota: 5,610
  14. Acura: 4,813
  15. GMC: 4,728
  16. Porsche: 4,358
  17. Mercedes: 3,472
  18. Subaru: 3,131
  19. Volvo: 2,718
  20. Jeep: 2,595
  21. Dodge: 1,947
  22. Genesis: 1,496
  23. Lexus: 1,453
  24. Mini: 696
  25. Jaguar: 381
  26. Additional EV models*: 5,390

 

Total EV sales estimated by KBB in the U.S. in Q1 2025: 296,227

*The additional EV models category is likely made up of low-volume, luxury, and niche EV makers

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Top 10 EV models sold in the U.S. in Q1 2025

  1. Tesla Model Y: 64,051
  2. Tesla Model 3: 52,520
  3. Ford Mustang Mach-E: 11,607
  4. Chevrolet Equinox EV: 10,329
  5. Honda Prologue: 9,561
  6. Hyundai Ioniq 5: 8,611
  7. VW ID.4: 7,663
  8. Ford F-150 Lightning: 7,187
  9. BMW i4: 7,125
  10. Tesla Cybertruck: 6,406

Here’s how many EVs were sold in the U.S. last year by model

Zach is a renewable energy reporter who has been covering electric vehicles since 2020. He grew up in Fremont, California, and he currently lives in Colorado. His work has appeared in the Chicago Tribune, KRON4 San Francisco, FOX31 Denver, InsideEVs, CleanTechnica, and many other publications. When he isn't covering Tesla or other EV companies, you can find him writing and performing music, drinking a good cup of coffee, or hanging out with his cats, Banks and Freddie. Reach out at zach@teslarati.com, find him on X at @zacharyvisconti, or send us tips at tips@teslarati.com.

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Tesla investors will be shocked by Jim Cramer’s latest assessment

Jim Cramer is now speaking positively about Tesla, especially in terms of its Robotaxi performance and its perception as a company.

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Credit: CNBC Television/YouTube

Tesla investors will be shocked by analyst Jim Cramer’s latest assessment of the company.

When it comes to Tesla analysts, many of them are consistent. The bulls usually stay the bulls, and the bears usually stay the bears. The notable analysts on each side are Dan Ives and Adam Jonas for the bulls, and Gordon Johnson for the bears.

Jim Cramer is one analyst who does not necessarily fit this mold. Cramer, who hosts CNBC’s Mad Money, has switched his opinion on Tesla stock (NASDAQ: TSLA) many times.

He has been bullish, like he was when he said the stock was a “sleeping giant” two years ago, and he has been bearish, like he was when he said there was “nothing magnificent” about the company just a few months ago.

Now, he is back to being a bull.

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Cramer’s comments were related to two key points: how NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang describes Tesla after working closely with the Company through their transactions, and how it is not a car company, as well as the recent launch of the Robotaxi fleet.

Jensen Huang’s Tesla Narrative

Cramer says that the narrative on quarterly and annual deliveries is overblown, and those who continue to worry about Tesla’s performance on that metric are misled.

“It’s not a car company,” he said.

He went on to say that people like Huang speak highly of Tesla, and that should be enough to deter any true skepticism:

“I believe what Musk says cause Musk is working with Jensen and Jensen’s telling me what’s happening on the other side is pretty amazing.”

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Tesla self-driving development gets huge compliment from NVIDIA CEO

Robotaxi Launch

Many media outlets are being extremely negative regarding the early rollout of Tesla’s Robotaxi platform in Austin, Texas.

There have been a handful of small issues, but nothing significant. Cramer says that humans make mistakes in vehicles too, yet, when Tesla’s test phase of the Robotaxi does it, it’s front page news and needs to be magnified.

He said:

“Look, I mean, drivers make mistakes all the time. Why should we hold Tesla to a standard where there can be no mistakes?”

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It’s refreshing to hear Cramer speak logically about the Robotaxi fleet, as Tesla has taken every measure to ensure there are no mishaps. There are safety monitors in the passenger seat, and the area of travel is limited, confined to a small number of people.

Tesla is still improving and hopes to remove teleoperators and safety monitors slowly, as CEO Elon Musk said more freedom could be granted within one or two months.

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Tesla launches ultra-fast V4 Superchargers in China for the first time

Tesla has V4 Superchargers rolling out in China for the first time.

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla already has nearly 12,000 Supercharger piles across mainland China. However, the company just initiated the rollout of the ultra-fast V4 Superchargers in China for the first time, bringing its quick-charging piles to the country for the first time since their launch last year.

The first batch of V4 Superchargers is now officially up and running in China, the company announced in a post on Chinese social media outlet Weibo today.

Tesla China teases arrival of V4 Superchargers in 2025

The company said in the post:

“The first batch of Tesla V4 Superchargers are online. Covering more service areas, high-speed charging is more convenient, and six-layer powerful protection such as rain and waterproof makes charging very safe. Simultaneously open to non-Tesla vehicles, and other brands of vehicles can also be charged. There are more than 70,000 Tesla Superchargers worldwide. The charging network layout covers 100% of the provincial capitals and municipalities in mainland China. More V4 Superchargers will be put into use across the country. Optimize the charging experience and improve energy replenishment efficiency. Tesla will accompany you to the mountains, rivers, lakes, and seas with pure electricity!”

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The first V4 Superchargers Tesla installed in China are available in four cities across the country: Shanghai, Zhejiang, Gansu, and Chongqing.

Credit: Tesla China

Tesla has over 70,000 Superchargers worldwide. It is the most expansive and robust EV charging network in the world. It’s the main reason why so many companies have chosen to adopt Tesla’s charging connector in North America and Europe.

In China, some EVs can use Tesla Superchargers as well.

The V4 Supercharger is capable of charging vehicles at speeds of up to 325kW for vehicles in North America. This equates to over 1,000 miles per hour of charging.

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Elon Musk hints at when Tesla could reduce Safety Monitors from Robotaxi

Tesla could be reducing Safety Monitors from Robotaxi within ‘a month or two,’ CEO Elon Musk says.

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Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer | X

Elon Musk hinted at when Tesla could begin reducing Safety Monitors from its Robotaxis. Safety Monitors are Tesla employees who sit in the front passenger seat during the driverless rides, and are there to ensure safety for occupants during the earliest rides.

Tesla launched its Robotaxi fleet in Austin last Sunday, and after eight days, videos and reviews from those who have ridden in the driverless vehicles have shown that the suite is safe, accurate, and well coordinated. However, there have been a few hiccups, but nothing that has put anyone’s safety in danger.

A vast majority — close to all of the rides — at least according to those who have ridden in the Robotaxi, have been performed without any real need for human intervention. We reported on what was the first intervention last week, as a Safety Monitor had to step in and stop the vehicle in a strange interaction with a UPS truck.

Watch the first true Tesla Robotaxi intervention by safety monitor

The Tesla and UPS delivery truck were going for the same street parking space, and the Tesla began to turn into it. The UPS driver parallel parked into the spot, which was much smaller than his truck. It seemed to be more of an instance of human error instead of the Robotaxi making the wrong move. This is something that the driverless cars will have to deal with because humans are aggressive and sometimes make moves they should not.

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The Safety Monitors have not been too active in the vehicles. After all, we’ve only seen that single instance of an intervention. There was also an issue with the sun, when the Tesla braked abnormally due to the glare, but this was an instance where the car handled the scenario and proceeded normally.

With the Robotaxi fleet operating impressively, some are wondering when Tesla will begin scaling back both the Safety Monitors and Teleoperators that it is using to ensure safety with these early rides.

CEO Elon Musk answered the inquiry by stating, “As soon as we feel it is safe to do so. Probably within a month or two.”

Musk’s response seems to confirm that there will be fewer Teleoperators and Safety Monitors in the coming months, but there will still be some within the fleet to ensure safety. Eventually, that number will get to zero.

Reaching a point where Tesla’s Robotaxi is driverless will be another significant milestone for the company and its path to fully autonomous ride-sharing.

Eventually, Tesla will roll out these capabilities to consumer-owned vehicles, offering them a path to generate revenue as their car operates autonomously and completes rides.

For now, Tesla is focusing on perfecting the area of Austin where it is currently offering driverless rides for just $4.20 to a small group of people.

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