In South Korea last month, Chevrolet sold 1.621 units of its Bolt EV while Hyundai sold 1.076 units of the Kona EV.
Both automakers expressed pride in their achievements, as we can see in their press releases.
Chevrolet Korea:
“Electric car bolt EV sales totaled 1,621 units, an increase of 4,056% over the previous year. The Bolt EV, which sold 1,014 units in the domestic market in May, continued its sales record for more than 1,000 units for two consecutive months and occupied a solid position in the domestic electric vehicle market.”
Hyundai Korea:
“On the other hand, the Kona EV, which started selling in earnest from last month, sold 1,076 units, and its standby capacity exceeded 15,000 units, causing a stir in the electric car market.”
Note that last month in the USA, Chevrolet only sold 1.083 units of the Chevrolet Bolt EV.
It’s obvious that a compact hatchback like the Chevrolet Bolt EV is much more suitable for Asian and European customers than it’s for the USA’s electric car market. It’s a shame that GM didn’t go through with the plan of transforming Opel into a pure electric brand – instead of selling it to the PSA Group. Without supply constraints the Opel Ampera-e could easily be the best selling electric car in Europe, at least until the Tesla Model 3 or the 2019 Nissan Leaf arrive.
Anyway, both the Chevrolet Bolt EV and the Hyundai Kona EV are currently enjoying their golden days in South Korea. But will it last? Could the upcoming Kia Niro EV surpass them both?
I guess that at the moment – with very limited offer to choose from – it isn’t the best electric car model that sells the most, but the one which is more readily available to bring home.
