- A new study from S&P Global Mobility analyzes which electric cars are stealing the most buyers from other brands.
- In the auto industry, those sales are known as “conquests.”
- The Hyundai Ioniq 5 took the top spot, with around 74% of sales coming from conquests. The Toyota bZ4X came in last.
Broadly speaking, electric vehicles are throwing loyalty out the window and helping brands steal buyers from competitors in unexpected ways. That’s something we’ve known to be true for years, and it’s something car companies brag about constantly. For automakers, “conquests” are a big deal.
But as it turns out, some electric cars are way better at capturing new buyers than others, according to a report out this month from S&P Global Mobility. Some buck this trend completely by barely bringing in conquests at all.
Before I lose you to all this industry jargon, let me quickly explain why this matters. As you probably are aware, the whole automotive landscape is being reshaped by electrification. And, because the battery-powered options out there are still fairly limited, EV buyers are more likely to try something new, even if it’s outside of their favorite brand.
This leaves a huge opening for the brands that can nail this transition, gain a foothold and edge out competitors. Automakers that can’t pivot fast enough or in the right way will bleed loyal customers to those up-and-coming brands. After that, those customers may be lost for good.
Photo by: Patrick George
So who’s doing the best at conquests and setting themselves up for the future? Anybody who’s been following this industry won’t be surprised to learn that Hyundai and Kia are doing exceptionally well here. The Hyundai Motor Group, which oversees both brands, has made a point of dropping several EVs with striking designs and top-notch charging and range specs. That’s paying off.
The Hyundai Ioniq 5 earned the top spot in S&P Global’s study, which looked at 29 newly released EV models with at least 15 months of sales data. A whopping 74.2% of Ioniq 5 sales—nearly three-quarters—are conquests from competitive brands. This is way higher than the 52.5% average for the Hyundai brand overall.
| EV Model | Model conquest rate | Brand conquest rate | |
| 1. | Hyundai loniq 5 | 74.2% | 52.5% |
| 2. | Cadillac Lyriq | 72.6% | 56.6% |
| 3. | GMC HUMMER EV (pickup) | 71.3% | 55.0% |
| 4. | Kia EV6 | 70.3% | 57.4% |
| 5. | Volkswagen ID.4 | 70.3% | 56.1% |
| 6. | Volvo XC40 Recharge | 69.5% | 58.9% |
| 7. | Mini Cooper EV | 68.3% | 60.2% |
| 8. | Hyundai loniq 6 | 65.5% | 52.5% |
| 9. | Hyundai Kona EV | 65.3% | 53.0% |
| 10. | Audi Q4 E-Tron | 62.0% | 54.6% |
| 11. | Kia Niro EV | 62.0% | 57.4% |
| 12. | Porsche Taycan | 61.2% | 61.5% |
| 13. | BMW i4 | 60.4% | 51.4% |
| 14. | Ford Mustang Mach-E | 59.5% | 36.4% |
| 15. | Nissan Leaf | 58.9% | 41.3% |
| 16. | Ford F-150 Lightning | 58.2% | 36.7% |
| 17. | Mercedes-Benz EQB | 56.6% | 53.1% |
| 18. | Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV | 53.3% | 53.1% |
| 19. | BMW iX | 52.9% | 51.9% |
| 20. | Audi E-Tron GT | 51.0% | 43.7% |
| 21. | Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV | 50.7% | 52.6% |
| 22. | Mercedes-Benz EQS | 49.5% | 54.5% |
| 23. | Audi Q8 E-Tron | 48.2% | 55.2% |
| 24. | BMW i7 | 47.9% | 50.5% |
| 25. | Lexus RZ | 47.5% | 55.1% |
| 26. | Mercedes-Benz EQE | 45.3% | 53.1% |
| 27. | Subaru Solterra | 45.3% | 47.6% |
| 28. | Nissan Ariya | 40.9% | 41.3% |
| 29. | Toyota bZ4X | 33.5% | 40.5% |
| Source: S&P Global Mobility — Calendar year through September 2024. | |||
The Cadillac Lyriq snagged No.2, with 72.6% of sales coming from conquests, 16% above the brand’s average. The GMC Hummer EV, Kia EV6 and Volkswagen ID.4 all had scores of over 70%. And most EVs in the study did better than their respective brand’s average.
Photo by: Toyota
Which brands aren’t doing so well? The Toyota bZ4X came in last, with 33.5% of sales coming from conquests from competitive brands. The average for Toyota is higher, at 40.5%, so the brand’s sole EV in the U.S. is actually dragging down its ability to capture new customers.
The bZ4X suffers from short range, sluggish charging speeds and a price that’s too high for what you get—although, as we’ve noted on the site before, it’s just a couple of tweaks away from being a hit. Even Toyota, which has been reluctant to fully embrace EVs and thinks hybrids are a better solution right now, has acknowledged this is a problem. An executive recently said Toyota has “learned from the bZ4X crisis.”
Also near the bottom are the Subaru Solterra (a rebadged bZ4X), Nissan Ariya, Mercedes-Benz EQE and Lexus RZ (which is, again, a bZ4X under the skin). The abundance of Mercedes EVs toward the bottom of the list could have to do with the EQ line’s rounded, blob-like styling, which isn’t what people expect from a Mercedes and hasn’t exactly resonated with customers.
Per S&P Global, the top-ranked EVs in its list also demonstrate above-average range, charging speeds and horsepower, while the lowest-ranked models fall short on those metrics.
So the lesson for car companies here may be an obvious one: make great EVs, and you’ll snag buyers from the brands that can’t—or won’t.
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