Sustainability Market share of newly registered electric & hybrid cars from 2021 to 2025

[Maciamo]

I have updated the map Market share of newly registered electric & hybrid cars. You can see how the market share dramatically increased in many countries from 2021 to 2025.

 

[bigsnake49]

I wonder if we can have a map like that by county in the US. I know that in my area, although very Republican and MAGA, there are a a lot of Teslas. I guess they don't believe everything that Trump says about electric cars.

 

[Duarte]

I wonder if we can have a map like that by county in the US. I know that in my area, although very Republican and MAGA, there are a a lot of Teslas. I guess they don't believe everything that Trump says about electric cars.

The transition to more sustainable mobility is a global issue, which is why countries are investing in electrification: to reduce emissions and seek alternatives to fossil fuels. Considering that the MAGA (Make America Great Again) movement, led by Donald Trump, is widely recognized for adopting a denialist or skeptical stance regarding global warming, frequently characterizing it as a "hoax," Trump's position on electric cars is not surprising. Elon Musk's contradictory stance of maintaining a political alliance with MAGA while being CEO of a pioneering electric vehicle company may have greatly contributed to Tesla's loss of market share in Europe and China. However, the scenario of automobile electrification cannot be seen as uniform worldwide; solutions must be adapted to the reality of each market or country. While a 100% electric vehicle fleet may be the ideal solution for countries like Norway, Sweden, or the Netherlands, for example, it is far from being a solution for countries like Brazil. In this scenario, Brazil occupies a unique position — not only because of its clean energy matrix, but also because of the ideal combination of automotive technology and renewable resources.
Brazil is the world's second-largest producer of ethanol, behind only the United States, with production heavily based on sugarcane. Flex-fuel hybrid cars, like those sold in the Brazilian market, combine two propulsion systems: an electric motor, responsible for generating immediate torque and reducing consumption on short trips in slow, and often congested journeys of large cities; and a combustion engine, which can be fueled with ethanol, gasoline, or a mixture of both in any proportion. The combustion of ethanol in hybrid engines generates a negligible amount of CO², when compared to gasoline or diesel. Furthermore, unlike 100% electric vehicles, flex-fuel hybrids do not require additional infrastructure, which is a huge advantage for a country of continental dimensions like Brazil. There is also another aspect - the economic one: the cost of ethanol tends to be more competitive than that of gasoline, which benefits the consumer's wallet. While many parts of the world are still debating the future of electric vehicle charging networks, Brazil already has a well-established infrastructure: virtually all gas stations in the country offer ethanol. This widespread availability allows hybrid flex-fuel cars to circulate freely, without depending on charging points or costs, and increasing convenience for the driver. Considering all the CO² produced by a car during its production, use, and disposal, a hybrid vehicle, when operating on ethanol in Brazil, is probably the cleanest mass-produced vehicle on the planet. I just traded in my Honda HRV Touring Flex (which runs on any proportion of ethanol or gasoline and is an excellent vehicle, by the way) for a Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid Flex, which combines the technology of a Flex combustion engine with the technology of Toyota hybrid vehicles, already widely tested and approved worldwide, and I am very happy with the new car, just as I was with the HRV, only now I am more economical and more environmentally friendly.

 

[Duarte]

However, the scenario of automobile electrification cannot be seen as uniform worldwide; solutions must be adapted to the reality of each market or country. While a 100% electric vehicle fleet may be the ideal solution for countries like Norway, Sweden, or the Netherlands, for example, it is far from being a solution for countries like Brazil. In this scenario, Brazil occupies a unique position — not only because of its clean energy matrix, but also because of the ideal combination of automotive technology and renewable resources.

A report published today in The Economist magazine addresses the issue of the massive use of biofuels in Brazil. In a way, it confirms what I wrote above.

Brazil has a secret weapon against oil shocks

“Biofuels will help the country fend off the effects of conflict in the Middle East

Few countries were ready for the oil shock caused by Israel and America’s war with Iran. Brazil was. During the past half-century, the agriculture giant has built the world’s most sophisticated biofuels industry. It is the second-largest producer of ethanol, an alcohol that can be used to power cars, and the third-largest of biodiesel, which fuels heavy vehicles. They are mixed into petrol and diesel, with government-mandated blends of 30% and 15% respectively, among the highest globally. Three-quarters of Brazil’s light vehicles contain technology enabling them to burn anything from pure petrol to the 100% ethanol delivered by ubiquitous álcool pumps.”

(…)