13 Cars That Compete With the Tesla Model 3

Cars and Drivers

Published: July 30, 2017 8:52 am

Last Updated: January 12, 2020 9:37 am

Friday’s rollout of the first 30 Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) Model 3 production vehicles might generated as much ink (including burned pixels) as the Hollywood premiere of “Gone with the Wind.” After all the hype, we can all be forgiven if we think that the Model 3 is the only all-electric (EV) on U.S. roads.

In fact, though, including the Tesla Model S sedan and Model X crossover, there are 13 EVs available in the United States, varying in price from around $28,000 to well over $100,000 for a top of the line Tesla Model S P100D.

The Model 3’s main competitor is the Chevrolet Bolt from General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) which is available at a list price of around $37,500 compared to the Model 3’s base price of $35,000. What sets these two cars apart is their range on a single full charge — more than 200 miles, double the range of any other vehicle in the group at the base price.

Sales of all-electric cars are up nearly 30% in the United States through the first six months of this year. A total of 44,228 EVs have been sold with four models taking up the lion’s share of the total: Tesla’s Model S (11,100; 25% of sales); Tesla Model X (9,100; 24% of sales); Chevy Bolt (7,592; 19% of sales); and Nissan Leaf (7,248; 17% of sales). Many EVs are not available for sale in all 50 states

We’ve combined two reports, one from hybridcars.com and the other from greencarreports.com, to create this list of the 13 EVs currently for sale along with the vehicle’s MSRP and its range on a fully charged battery. The list is ordered by 2017 year-to-date sales.

Tesla Model S: $69,200; 210 miles (60 kWh battery); 11,100 total 2017 sales
Tesla Model X: $90,000; 238 miles (75 kWh battery); 9,100 sales
Chevy Bolt: $37,495; 238 miles (60 kWh battery); 7,592 sales
Nissan Leaf: $31,545; 107 miles (30 kWh battery); 7,248 sales
BMW i3: $43,395; 81 miles (22 kWh battery); 2,992 sales
Fiat 500e: $32,780; 84 miles (24 kWh battery); 1,865 sales
VW e-Golf: $30,000 (est.); 125 miles (35.8 kWh battery); 1,887 sales
Ford Focus EV: $29,995; 115 miles (33.5 kWh battery); 1,058 sales
Kia Soul EV: $32,800; 93 miles (27 kWh battery); 836 sales
Mercedes B-Class Electric: $40,825; 87 miles (28 kWh battery); 317 sales
Hyundai Ioniq EV: $29,500; 124 miles (28 kWh battery); 157 sales
Smart forTwo EV: $16,850; 80 miles (17.6 kWh battery); 57 sales
Chevrolet Spark (discontinued): $25,120; 82 miles (19 kWh battery); 13 sales

Volkswagen’s 2017 version of its e-Golf is a significant improvement over the previous model. Ford Motor Co.’s (NYSE: F) Focus EV competes directly with the VW e-Golf on price and range, but June sales of the VW EV were more than double that of the Focus EV. The good news for VW is that six-month sales of the e-Golf are up 30% year over year. The better news for Ford is that Focus sales are up 137% for the first half of this year. The less-good news is that both cars sold fewer copies in June than they did last year.

Two years from now the number of EVs with battery ranges of at least 200 miles will rise from four to 10 and by the end of 2020 there could be as many as 20 on the market. Hybridcars.com lists 14 models currently known to be in the works:

Audi e-tron Quattro Crossover: April 2018
Jaguar i-Pace Crossover: July 2018
BMW 3 Series: October 2018
Audi eTron Sportback Crossover: June 2019
Mercedes ELC (based on GLC): June 2019
Mercedes C-Class: October 2019
Mini Unnamed: October 2019
Porsche Mission E (Pajun is nickname): October 2019
BMW X3: 2020
Ford Model E Crossover: April 2020
Smart BEV: CY20
Volvo BEV: CY19
VW ID Crozz Crossover: October 2021 (not counted for 2020)
VW ID Car: January 2021 (not counted for 2020)

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