What Happens With The 6 Best Selling Electric Cars In The USA Now? – CleanTechnica

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So, we’re here. The US tax credit for electric vehicles is gone. Objectively, many electric vehicle models still compete very well with the gas-powered competition. However, the stimulus of a tax credit means fewer people will be told “hey, you should consider an EV — you can get a tax credit from it,” something that people with personal or business accountants were often told. And, of course, EVs do now cost more than they did a month ago. But there are also some positive things.

As I wrote previously, the surge in EV purchases that resulted from the tax credit getting killed raised overall awareness about EVs, increased the number of happy EV owners who will rave about their cars to family and friends, and could lead to a lot more word-of-mouth sales. Or not. Who knows?

Naturally, this is a topic I keep wondering about. What happens in the US electric vehicle market now? What will the next several quarters look like? Of course, a large portion of EV sales — the vast majority — are from just a handful of top selling models. So, to consider the overall question, I figured it made some sense to explore the question with these models. I picked out the 6 models that had more than 20,000 sales in the last quarter.

Tesla Model Y: Unfortunately for the Tesla Model Y, this electric crossover has been fighting a decline in sales for the past couple of years. More and more entrants in its class, the sales effect of Elon Musk’s political activities, and the model simply getting older and older have typically meant year-over-year sales declines from the peaks the Model Y reached when it was the top selling vehicle model in the world. For example, in the US, sales of the Model Y went from 96,729 in Q1 2024 to 64,051 in Q1 2025, and went from 101,301 in Q2 2024 to 86,120 in Q2 2025. The Model Y was recently upgraded with a new look, better tech, and an overall refresh that was supposed to make it seem like a new model again. Though, that was at the beginning of the year, so the boost in sales from the refresh has likely worn off by now.

On the positive side, there’s a new cheaper trim of the model. It is actually more expensive than the (better) base model was before the tax credits were eliminated, but on the surface — looking at the upfront price — it looks like a lower entry point for shoppers. Like I said above, other electric crossovers have come onto the scene in recent years and taken some of the Model Y’s sales, but perhaps these other models will be pushed less as legacy automakers step off the electric pedal (after all, fuel economy standards have also been all but eliminated by the Trump administration), making it easier for Tesla to find more customers again?

All things considered, I’m having a hard time seeing Tesla’s trends reversing. Even as the overall US EV market was up significantly, Tesla sales were down, so I do expect the Model Y could continue drifting downward in the next few quarters. Could it get down to just 50,000 sales a quarter? Even lower? The last time it was down in that territory was in the 3rd quarter of 2021 when about 49,900 units were sold in the USA.

Tesla Model 3: The Model 3 is facing many of the same issues as the Model Y, except it’s even older than the Model 3, its refresh happened last year, and most people who used to buy sedans now buy crossovers. On the other hand, there isn’t a lot of competition in the sedan market in the US. In the past year, the Model 3 has gotten around 50,000–60,000 sales a quarter. Can it sustain that? I’m skeptical. If it can’t, are we talking about a drop down to around 30,000, like its Q1 2024 total, or could it go down to 20,000–25,000 sales a quarter, like in the first half of 2021?

Chevrolet Equinox EV: This is an interesting one. The Chevy Equinox EV has become the best selling non-Tesla EV in the United States. It reached 25,085 sales in Q3 2025, well above its previous record from Q4 2024 of 18,089 sales and Q2 2025’s 17,420 sales. Of course, it was boosted by the expiring tax credits, but it has only been on the market since Q2 2024, it quickly got to a pretty decent volume and awareness of the EV has surely risen a great deal, and it competes quite well with its gas-powered twin!

The Equinox EV starts at $33,600, while the gasoline Equinox starts at $28,700. And the Equinox EV stands out with a larger infotainment screen (17.7 inches versus 11.3 inches) and a sharper, more futuristic or modern frontend. Throw in the convenience and cost savings from home charging as well as the nicer driving experience, and it’s easy to see why even many mainstream buyers would choose the Equinox EV over the sort of boring and stale gas-powered Equinox. You have to move up to the $33,600 RS or Activ trim just to get some design tweaks and a bit more character, which happens to be right where that higher tech Equinox EV starts.

But there are the matters of production volumes and how much auto dealers will push or even have available the Equinox EV. I tend to think, though, that the model has reached high enough sales levels that many in the old-school auto world will be compelled to keep moving units. As with all of these models, there are a lot of factors and it’s anyone’s guess. My thought is that after a moderate dip in sales for two quarters, the Equinox EV could come surging back and actually have a strong 2026. Although … there is another wildcard that just hit me. The Equinox EV is no longer the cheapest EV on the market. Chevrolet itself just revived the Bolt at a much lower price, and the new Nissan LEAF is also a few thousand dollars cheaper. So, someone looking for the lowest priced new EV now has other options that are significantly cheaper. Hmm … the Equinox EV could be in for an interesting ride.

Honda Prologue: The Honda Prologue is definitely an interesting one. It is basically a GM vehicle underneath, but it gets a lot of sales from people who just swear by Honda, trust Honda, and think it’s 100% a Honda. The company has a very loyal customer base, and it seems that there are many people who held off on buying an EV until Honda had one out — and now they are happily driving around in Prologues. You see them routinely, and Honda sold 22,236 of them in the 3rd quarter. That said, this was a huge increase from its usual quarterly numbers — 9,561 in the 1st quarter and 6,756 in the 2nd quarter, or even 18,838 in the 4th quarter of 2024.

My concern/hunch is that Honda will struggle to reach 20,000 sales a quarter again with the Prologue. Also, here’s the kicker: the Prologue starts at $47,400, and there are a handful of electric alternatives in this size that seem like a much better deal. That said, for the Honda loyal, the midsize Prologue competes well against the midsize Passport ($44,750) and midsize Pilot ($40,200), and Honda buyers do typically appreciate fuel efficiency — which the Prologue wins in hands down. So, maybe with 20,000+ more of these out on the road, many more mainstream Honda buyers will notice, get intrigued, and go electric. This may be the hardest model of all from this list to conjecture about.

Hyundai IONIQ 5: The IONIQ 5 absolutely stormed the shores in the 3rd quarter, nearly doubling its sales. It went from 10,481 sales in the 2nd quarter to 21,999 sales in the 3rd quarter, well above its previous record of 14,082 sales in the 4th quarter of 2024 (when people first thought the EV tax credit might be killed). Now, the IONIQ 5 stands out, as Hyundai is currently offering and promoting up to $11,000 in retail bonus cash or $0 APR for up to 72 months. The company took the end of the tax credit to mind and went a huge leap forward in offering this financial incentive. So, one would think the IONIQ 5’s sales will continue booming in the 4th quarter. However, these incentives are supposed to end in November, so who knows how far they will go? And what comes after that?

The IONIQ 5 is so unique looking that you can also see buyers gravitating to it naturally just from seeing it on the road, not necessarily because it’s electric. And when you get in the vehicle, it feels a little bit like an “Apple car.” Will that combined with all the extra units out on the road and also combined with all of the natural benefits of electric cars help to move a lot of medal quarter after quarter? Who knows? I’m leaning toward optimistic on the IONIQ 5. I think/hope Hyundai will follow up the $11,000 retail bonus cash with other incentives or a big price cut, and I think the visual appeal, tech, and happy owner chatter of the IONIQ 5 will keep pulling in buyers, especially in EV-happy California where many buyers are now looking for an alternative to Tesla.

Ford Mustang Mach-E: Last but not least, we have the Ford Mustang Mach-E. Similar to the Hyundai IONIQ 5, the Mustang Mach-E nearly doubled its sales in the 3rd quarter, going from 10,178 the quarter before to 20,177. Also like the IONIQ 5, one of the Mustang Mach-E’s big selling points is its unique, attractive design. As Mustangs always have, the Mustang Mach-E stands out on the road, is extra cool and sporty looking, and is just going to win some base number of sales on its smile. It’s also surprisingly cheap — starting at just $37,995. Okay, not cheap, but well below the average new car price and a good territory for a midsize SUV with flair. I’m hopeful that the Mustang Mach-E can return to 20,000 quarterly sales within a year. If Ford gets a little more aggressive on pricing or comes out with some updates — external and/or internal — perhaps it could even stimulate another sales surge.

Overall, in net, what can we expect from the 6 best selling electric vehicles in the US in coming quarters? It’s hard to guess, but … I’m cautiously optimistic. These are strong contenders in the market even against top gas-powered vehicles. There’s also the possibility that they could get more cost competitive in coming months and quarters as trends in the market evolve.

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