Tesla Model S is by far the most exported electric car

In 2013 the time had come. The first copies of the Tesla Model S were finally delivered in the Netherlands. In its first Dutch sales year, 1,194 copies were sold. The following year, 1,437 Model S found a home in the Netherlands and in 2017, 2,077 Teslas were already registered in the Netherlands. In 2018, the Tesla Model S had its absolute top year in the Netherlands with 5,622 newly registered units. The Netherlands now seems Model S-tired. The Tesla Model S is the electric car of which the most copies have already been exported this year. This is evident from a report by residual value assessor Autotelex.

No fewer than 1,154 Tesla Model Ss left our country in the first ten months of 2023. That is almost as many as were delivered in 2013. No other electric car has had so many exports up to and including October this year. The distance to number two is enormous. In second place is the little brother Model 3, of which 657 units were exported from January to October this year. The Volkswagen e-Golf follows in third place with 625 registrations. By the way, we also find a Tesla in sixth place, where the Model

The large number of Tesla Model Ss leaving the Netherlands is of course partly related to the greater popularity that the cheaper Tesla Model 3 and Model Y enjoy. Of course, it also plays a role that the Model S has been on the market for a while and there are therefore already many copies available for which the lease contracts have expired. This also explains the presence of the Model 3 in second place, the first copies of that car were already delivered at the end of 2018. The entire Top 10 consists of models that have been around in the Netherlands for years or are no longer sold. Just look at the i3, Ioniq Electric and the Ampera-e. A total of 6,295 EVs were exported in the first ten months of this year.

Top 10 most exported electric cars – January to October 2023

Import

While older electric cars in particular are leaving the Netherlands, private individuals and car companies are also bringing EVs to our country. Up to and including October, there were considerably more than were exported. More than twice as much, in fact: 14,649 pieces. The Top 10 of EVs that the Dutch car market would rather lose looks completely different from the ranking of most imported EVs. For example, the list of the ten most imported electric cars largely consists of models that have not been on the market for very long. The Peugeot e-208 is the most imported electric car so far this year and the Volkswagen ID3 is in second place.

The fact that significantly more EVs are imported than exported indicates, among other things, that there is certainly demand for used electric cars. This is of course also evident from the eagerness with which the SEPP subsidy pot for second-hand electric cars is being emptied. With a Model S you are not entitled to SEPP purchase subsidy, not even with the majority of Tesla’s Model 3s with a number of years of experience.

Top 10 most imported electric cars – January to October 2023

Rock bottom reached

According to Autotelex, older electric cars have now reached their lowest point in terms of residual value. This would mean that cars such as the Model S, older Nissan Leafs and the like will not become much cheaper than they are now.

Total import and export

In the first ten months of this year, a total of 206,624 cars – regardless of powertrain type – were imported. Nearly 7,600 copies of the Volkswagen Golf were brought to the Netherlands, making the Golf the most imported car. The Volkswagen Polo and Toyota Yaris are in second and third places.

The Volkswagen Golf was also the model of which the most units were exported in the first ten months of this year. This concerns 2,839 pieces. In places two and three we find the Volvo V40 and the Renault Mégane (Estate). A total of 89,839 passenger cars have been exported up to and including October.