The sales trend line for battery-electric vehicles has been inching downward in the US since the Trump administration discontinued $7,500 federal tax credits last fall. The industry sold 244,000 new EVs in the second quarter, down 22% from a year ago, while used EVs reached an all-time high in the second quarter with 128,000 deliveries, according to the latest report from Cox Automotive. But automakers had been banking on brisk sales of new EVs by now, and that has not happened yet. That is, save for one curious outlier defying the odds.
Hybrid and EV sales trends for Q2 2026 from Cox AutomotiveCox Automotive
For the undisputed EV leader in the US, Tesla, EV sales rallied in the second quarter. Even after production ended in May for the Model S sedan and Model X SUV at Tesla’s Fremont, California, plant, the automaker managed to produce 451,758 EVs globally in the second quarter and deliver 480,126 to customers, representing 25% growth over the second quarter of 2025. That’s significant, so let’s take a closer look at the numbers to see what all this means.
Q2 2026
Q2 2026
Q2 2025
Q2 2025
%Change
Production
Deliveries
Production
Deliveries
Deliveries
Model 3/Y
442,936
467,762
396,835
373,728
+25.1%
Other Models
8,822
12,364
13,409
10,394
+18.9%
Total
451,758
480,126
410,244
384,122
+24.9%
Tesla Model 3 And Y Doing Heavy Lifting
Tesla merely reports global sales each quarter, so we can’t tell what percentage of these sales came from the US, Europe, or Asia. In the US, General Motors said it remains the No. 2 EV seller behind Tesla, with 56,679 units so far. That number is down by 27,477 units (32.6%) from last year, despite recent sales growth for Cadillac Optiq and Vistiq, Chevrolet Bolt, and GMC Sierra EV.
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Tesla also doesn’t break out sales by model, except to bundle together Models 3 and Y, which accounted for more than 97% of second-quarter sales. That leaves 12,364 total deliveries of the Cybertruck and any remaining inventory of the Model X and S. That does not bode well for Tesla’s unconventional all-electric pickup truck, which is assembled at the Gigafactory Texas plant in Austin.
North America-spec 2027 Tesla Model Y L rear three-quarter viewTesla
So, where is the EV market heading in the US? While Polestar is leaving the market and Honda, Volkswagen, and Volvo have canceled certain models, automakers such as BMW, Ford, and Stellantis have new EVs on the way.
Tesla Forecast Isn’t As Robust As It Was Two Months Ago
For Tesla, we can only see the future on a global basis. Each quarter, the automaker reports its forecasted “Delivery Consensus,” which estimates Tesla will sell 1.6 million vehicles globally this year (about the same as 2025), growing to 2.3 million in 2029 and 2.6 million in 2030. Just two months ago, however, Tesla said it expected to sell more than 3 million vehicles in 2029. Will those numbers include the new (and long overdue) Roadster and self-driving Cybercab?
Q2 2026 automotive sales trends as tracked by Cox AutomotiveCox Automotive
Cox Automotive shows a downward trend line for battery-electric vehicles, or anything with a plug. While hybrids reached a record high 14.1% of US sales earlier this year and internal-combustion engines still account for about 80% of new vehicle sales, battery-electric share was only 5.4%, down from 8% a year earlier. And plug-in hybrids aren’t doing any better, down from 2% a year ago to less than 1% as of the first quarter, according to Cox research.
CarBuzz Insight – Why This Matters:
Tesla remains the 800-pound gorilla in the US EV market, although it has lost market share in China and Europe to domestic producers. The newly arriving long-wheelbase Model Y L should help Tesla sales in the US, especially now that the larger Model X has been discontinued.
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Still, the Cybertruck is contributing very little to Tesla’s bottom line, and the Roadster is long overdue. How much longer can the Models 3 and Y continue generating nearly all the revenues for Tesla? CEO Elon Musk has high expectations for the Cybercab, which began production in April and started testing on public roads in Texas last month. Even if Tesla EV sales dip in the future, the company can bank on revenue from 25,359 Tesla Superchargers being used from coast to coast.
