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The overall vehicle market went from bad to worse in April. It marked the worst April for car sales since 1995. Yet, brisk hybrid sales showed once again that fuel-efficient gas-electric vehicles are recession-proof. Hybrid sales climbed above 3 percent of the total market for second time ever—the last time was May 2007, also a month when gas prices spiked.
When you connect the dots between the recession, the weak dollar, rising oil prices, and pain at the pumps, it adds up to an ever-increasing market share for hybrids. So far this year, hybrid sales have grown by 15 percent, while the overall market has declined by 8 percent.
Toyota continues to dominate the hybrid market. The Prius was the 11th bestselling vehicle in America—ranking in the number eight slot among passenger cars. The Prius and the Toyota Camry Hybrid are the only hybrids showing strong year-over-year growth. In April, the other hybrid producers were caught flat-footed again—with insufficient hybrid inventory and/or marketing. Despite having four hybrid models on the market, retail sales of General Motors hybrids tallied below 200 units.
"Top 5 global hybrid markets" based on vehicle registrations CYTD February 2008.
and "Top 5 US hybrid markets" based on vehicle registrations CYTD February 2008.
US Sales
Our information is based on hybrid sales as reported by the manufacturers. For each model, this month's sales are shown compared to sales in the previous month and at the same time last year. We also examine hybrid market share by model and manufacturer. The historical sales graph for top-selling hybrid models shows final 2007 volumes.
Hybrids sold in the U.S. (April 2008): 38,611
US hybrid sales for April 2008
| Model |
Units |
vs. last month |
vs. April 2007 |
CYTD |
vs. CYTD 2007 |
| Altima |
801 |
-3.7% |
65.8%% |
2,635 |
128.9% |
| Prius |
21,757 |
5.4% |
66.6% |
64,664 |
22.6% |
| Civic |
4,324 |
14.7% |
51.5% |
11,646 |
24.2% |
| Accord |
25 |
52.8% |
-92.1% |
168 |
-86.7% |
| Camry |
6,678 |
-3.6% |
51.4% |
19,296 |
23.0% |
| Highlander |
2,578 |
15.1% |
7.7% |
8,898 |
3.5% |
| RX400h |
1,624 |
3.4% |
17.3% |
5,553 |
3.8% |
| GS450h |
82 |
26.2% |
-52.9% |
288 |
-57.8% |
| LS600hL |
122 |
8.0% |
n/a |
452 |
n/a |
| Escape |
1,682 |
-5.6% |
-11.0% |
6,269 |
-4.6% |
| Mariner |
225 |
-0.4% |
-41.6% |
863 |
-25.6% |
| Vue |
40* |
-58.8% |
-95.7% |
208 |
-89.8% |
| Aura |
4* |
-80.0% |
-90.5% |
33 |
-17.5% |
| Tahoe |
69* |
-69.3% |
n/a |
404 |
n/a |
| Yukon |
49* |
-78.2% |
n/a |
369 |
n/a |
| All hybrids |
40,060 |
3.3% |
41.4% |
121,746 |
16.3% |
| All vehicles |
1,248,549 |
-8.0% |
-6.7% |
4,827,070 |
-7.7% |
* Retail sales only
U.S. hybrid sales for April 2008 by manufacturer and model
U.S. hybrid market historical sales (1999 - 2007 with 2008 forecast)
Regional Data
Source: R. L. Polk & Co.
Curious where hybrid buyers live? We present the data in two ways. First, we list the 15 cities and states that boast the largest numbers of new hybrids on their roads within the past year. For example, residents in the New York City area put over 19,000 new hybrids on the road in 2007. Second, we adjust for population and look at hybrids per person (in states) or per household (in metro areas). This lets us include cities like Portland, OR: a city that has fewer overall vehicles (and thus fewer hybrids) but has more hybrids per capita than anywhere else.
States with the Highest Hybrid Sales
| Rank |
State |
New Hybrids* |
| 1 |
California |
11,839 |
| 2 |
Florida |
2,753 |
| 3 |
New York |
2,589 |
| 4 |
Texas |
2,508 |
| 5 |
Illinois |
1,831 |
| 6 |
Arizona |
1,612 |
| 7 |
Virginia |
1,596 |
| 8 |
Pennsylvania |
1,500 |
| 9 |
Washington |
1,370 |
| 10 |
Massachusetts |
1,327 |
| 11 |
New Jersey |
1,256 |
| 12 |
Maryland |
1,144 |
| 13 |
Colorado |
1,061 |
| 14 |
Ohio |
1,020 |
| 15 |
Minnesota |
1,000 |
*Registrations CYTD February 2008
States where hybrids are most popular
| Rank |
State |
New Hybrids per 1000 Residents* |
| 1 |
District of Columbia |
0.698 |
| 2 |
California |
0.328 |
| 3 |
Arizona |
0.271 |
| 4 |
Oregon |
0.257 |
| 5 |
Nevada |
0.235 |
| 6 |
Colorado |
0.227 |
| 7 |
Washington |
0.218 |
| 8 |
Connecticut |
0.215 |
| 9 |
Vermont |
0.212 |
| 10 |
Virginia |
0.211 |
| 11 |
Massachusetts |
0.207 |
| 12 |
Maryland |
0.204 |
| 13 |
Delaware |
0.204 |
| 14 |
Hawaii |
0.201 |
| 15 |
Minnesota |
0.195 |
| |
US State Average |
0.149 |
*Registrations CYTD February 2008
Metropolitan areas with the highest hybrid sales
| Rank |
Metropolitan Area |
New Hybrids* |
| 1 |
Los Angeles |
5,318 |
| 2 |
San Francisco |
3,514 |
| 3 |
New York |
3,045 |
| 4 |
Washington, DC |
1,888 |
| 5 |
Chicago |
1,469 |
| 6 |
Phoenix |
1,408 |
| 7 |
Boston |
1,284 |
| 8 |
Philadelphia |
1,274 |
| 9 |
Seattle |
1,151 |
| 10 |
San Diego |
1,037 |
| 11 |
Sacramento, CA |
942 |
| 12 |
Denver |
920 |
| 13 |
Minneapolis-St. Paul |
904 |
| 14 |
Dallas-Ft. Worth |
816 |
| 15 |
Portland, OR |
761 |
*Registrations CYTD February 2008
Metropolitan areas where hybrids are most popular
| Rank |
Metropolitan Area |
New Hybrids per 1000 Households* |
| 1 |
Portland, OR |
1.870 |
| 2 |
San Francisco |
1.492 |
| 3 |
Santa Barbara, CA |
1.159 |
| 4 |
Monterey, CA |
1.036 |
| 5 |
San Diego |
1.011 |
| 6 |
Los Angeles |
0.961 |
| 7 |
Phoenix |
0.848 |
| 8 |
Washington, DC |
0.838 |
| 9 |
Charlottesville, VA |
0.832 |
| 10 |
Las Vegas |
0.756 |
| 11 |
Palm Springs, CA |
0.715 |
| 12 |
Sacramento, CA |
0.700 |
| 13 |
Helena, MT |
0.697 |
| 14 |
Eugene, OR |
0.680 |
| 15 |
Seattle |
0.676 |
| |
US Metro Area Average |
0.310 |
*Registrations CYTD February 2008
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