Study: Tesla Conquests Come From Honda, Toyota

A new study shows that a lot of Tesla buyers are coming to the brand from Honda and Toyota.

According to Automotive News, a study from S&P Global Mobility shows that Honda and Toyota owners are jumping to Tesla — and Ford, Hyundai, and Chevrolet — because Tesla, along with those three other brands, are further ahead when it comes to EV development.

“Early S&P Global Mobility data suggests consumers moving to electric vehicles in 2022 are largely doing so from Toyota and Honda — brands which have been unable to keep their internal combustion owners loyal until their own brands begin to participate more significantly in the EV transition,” the company told AN.

Not only are Honda and Toyota lagging on EVs, but there are other problems. Toyota’s bZ4X EV crossover went under a stop-sale order due to the possibility that its wheels could fall off, and Honda ended production on the Clarity, though Honda does have a Prologue EV planned for 2024.

Toyota did show 16 Toyota and Lexus electric vehicles to journalists about a year ago.

EV market share has doubled to 5.2 percent in the 12-month period that ended in September, according to AN. That’s even higher in California, where EVs have a 16 percent share of the market, Honda and Toyota have always done well in California, but Tesla and Ford took the second and third spots through the third quarter of this year. Toyota stayed number one but Honda was number four.

“S&P Global Mobility conquest data for Tesla’s Model 3 and Y, Ford Mustang Mach-E, Hyundai Ioniq 5 and the Chevrolet Bolt show strong captures of buyers from the two leading Japanese brands,” S&P told AN.

From October of last year until September of this year, 15 percent of Tesla conquests came from Toyota and 13 percent came from Honda. Seven percent came from BMW and 6.2 percent came from Mercedes-Benz.

That number interests us because Tesla is considered a luxury brand but it’s conquesting from Honda and Toyota. That tells us either the less-expensive Model 3 and Y are doing well, as noted in the above quote, and/or Honda and Toyota owners are willing to step up to pricier models.

According to S&P, it appears to be the former: “The top-five Model Y conquests are the Lexus RX, Honda CR-V, Toyota RAV4, Honda Odyssey and Honda Accord,” S&P Global said to AN. “Meanwhile, the top five Model 3 conquests are the Honda Civic, Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V.”

Ten years ago, Tesla’s Model S helped that brand also conquest Toyota customers, mostly Prius owners, as the Model S showed that “green” vehicles could look cool and be luxurious, and the Model S (and Tesla in general) became a status symbol for “green” buyers.

The news isn’t all rosy for Tesla, though — as EV nameplates increase (S&P predicts the number will grow from the current 48 to 159 by 2025), Tesla’s market share will drop from 65 percent to 20 percent due to increased competition.

[Image: Tesla]

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