Rivian is emerging as a dominant force among American electric vehicle (EV) startups, surpassing its peers in terms of registrations and market presence.
Recent data from Experian, as reported by Automotive News, reveals that Rivian’s new EV registrations in July reached an impressive 2,783 units. This figure outshines the monthly average of 2,596 registrations during the first half of the year. Rivian’s growing production of the R1T pickup and R1S SUV is expected to further boost these numbers.
Over the first seven months of the year, a total of 18,359 Rivian R1T and R1S vehicles were registered. Notably, this places Rivian as the eighth-highest in overall registrations within the all-electric car segment, accounting for about 2.8 percent of the market.
An intriguing detail is that the R1S has garnered more registrations than the R1T, with 10,748 and 7,611 units, respectively. However, it’s worth noting that the Ford F-150 Lightning, with 11,883 units sold, is expected to remain the top-selling all-electric pickup for the foreseeable future. Ford has also recently lowered the prices of the electric F-150, while Rivian is introducing new, longer-range dual-motor versions of its pickup.
In contrast, other newcomers in the EV market have reported lower registration volumes. Lucid, which entered the scene around the same time as Rivian in late 2021, saw 348 new Lucid Air registrations in July and 3,789 during the first seven months of the year. Lucid’s price reductions have been a response to competitive pressure, particularly from Tesla’s Model S.
VinFast, a Vietnamese automaker, ventured into the EV market but has shown limited progress. The all-electric VinFast VF 8 model had just 19 registrations in July and 170 over the first seven months of the year. This is less than 10 percent of the approximately 2,000 cars imported from Vietnam. Additionally, the monthly registration figures have seen a decline, from 66 in April to 19 in July.
Fisker, a newcomer in the EV market, registered 30 units of its Ocean model in July (with 37 total through July). Although Fisker entered the market recently, it has already delivered over 450 units of the all-electric crossover imported from Austria.
Tracking the development of EV startups is always intriguing, considering the historically challenging nature of starting a car company. Tesla remains the most successful example in the United States. As Karl Brauer, executive analyst at iSeeCars, points out, the second half of 2023 will be a critical time to observe these startups, as factors like economic conditions and increased EV model launches will exert additional pressure on them.
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