UK EV sales surge 36% to record high in September — SkimNews
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- SMMT preliminary data shows the UK registered 99,199 battery-electric cars in September, up 36.3% year-over-year and good for 28.3% market share — an all-time monthly record
- Tesla's Model 3 led UK EV sales at 9,929 units, making it the #2 car in the country overall; the Model Y added 5,946 units in fifth place, and 42% of Model 3 registrations for all of 2025 came in this single month
- Plug-in hybrids outpaced BEVs with 55.7% growth to 59,563 units; combined with BEVs, plug-ins hit 158,762 registrations (45.3% of the market) while petrol share fell from 45.2% to 37.6% year-over-year
- Chinese brands BYD (Sealion 7 at 3,191, Seal at 3,184) and Leapmotor (B10 at 1,883) cracked the UK EV top 10, and Chery's Jaecoo 7 PHEV was September's overall best-selling car at 10,813 units
- SMMT CEO Mike Hawes credited more model choice and high fuel prices for the record, then said the UK has "the world's toughest targets and highest energy costs" and wants the ZEV mandate brought closer to actual demand
- The 33% mandate target would require roughly 60% EV share across Q4, but New AutoMotive's effective 2026 target — counting credit flexibilities, CO2 cuts on ICE cars, and borrowing — is 24.6%, and the market is already at 26.2% YTD
- Model availability has more than doubled since 2023 to 178 EVs on sale in the UK, roughly twice the US count, and UK EV share (28%) now runs more than triple the US figure (8%)
Why it matters: The SMMT's push to ease the 33% ZEV mandate — already beaten in practice once credit flexibilities are counted (26.2% YTD vs. New AutoMotive's effective 24.6%) — risks tilting the UK market further toward plug-in hybrids, which grew 55.7% in September and include the month's overall best-seller, Chery's Jaecoo 7 PHEV, a pattern the article flags but the record-sales headline buries.
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