Deliveries of new battery-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles that qualify for the Zero-Emission Vehicles (iZEV) program climbed to a new 2022 high in August, while a surge in Model 3 deliveries gave Tesla back the top spot as the largest-volume brand under the federal program this year, according to data from Transport Canada.
Canadian August iZEV deliveries hit 2022 high; Tesla regains lead
Automakers in August delivered 6,956 new battery-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles that qualify for the Zero-Emission Vehicles incentive program
TESLA
Tesla delivered 2,177 Model 3s last month, more than four times its tally in July, putting it back into the leading position two months after it fell behind Hyundai.
IZEV PROGRAM AT A GLANCE
The iZEV program provides a $5,000 rebate for BEVs, as well as PHEVs with electric range greater than 49 kilometres. PHEVs with less electric range qualify for $2,500.
The same eligibility criteria applies to both categories. Zero-emission passenger cars starting at less than $55,000, and higher-cost variants up to $65,000 qualify for the incentives. Larger vehicles such as pickups, minivans and SUVs must have a base price of less than $60,000, and higher-cost variants must start at less than $70,000. Higher-cost trim levels are not eligible.
Tesla delivered 2,177 Model 3s last month, more than four times its tally in July, putting it back into the leading position two months after it fell behind Hyundai. The U.S.-based electric vehicle maker has shipped 9,725 eligible Model 3s so far this year, all of which were ordered before a price increase in November 2021 made the sedan too expensive to qualify for the rebate.
Hyundai held steady in August, delivering 1,045 vehicles eligible for the iZEV program, bringing its 2022 total to 9,344 vehicles.
Chevrolet inched ahead of the South Korean automaker for the month with shipments of 1,086 qualified vehicles, but it remains well off the leaders for the year, with 2,733 eligible deliveries so far in 2022.
Totals are based on the date the iZEV claim is submitted to Transport Canada, which occurs after the vehicle has been delivered to the consumer and the incentive has been applied at the point-of-sale.
Eligible shipments of the Chevrolet Bolt EUV trailed only those of the Model 3 in August. The U.S. automaker handed Bolt EUV keys to 804 Canadian customers last month, compared to 465 in July. Chevrolet also delivered 262 of its Bolt hatchbacks in August, up from 181 a month earlier.
The Hyundai Kona rounds out the list of top three BEVs; 555 eligible crossovers were received during the final month of summer.
A relatively new entrant to the iZEV program, meantime, gained traction in August. Ford shipped 475 qualifying Mach Es, accounting for nearly half of the 978 total eligible deliveries this year. The crossover gained entry into the iZEV program in April when Transport Canada increased its threshold for eligibility.
Eligible Jeep Wrangler 4xe deliveries slipped to 325 in August from 413 in July, but the SUV remained the largest mover among PHEVs that qualify for the iZEV program. As with the Mach E, the Wrangler 4xe has only been eligible for Ottawa’s incentives since April.
The Toyota Prius Prime and Ford Escape were the only two other eligible PHEVs that saw more than 200 deliveries in August, recording 216 and 205 shipments, respectively.
Strong performance across numerous brands in August pushed deliveries of iZEV-eligible vehicles up nearly 60 per cent from July.
The 6,956 vehicles to receive an incentive last month marks the second-highest monthly tally for the federal program since it began, trailing only August 2021, when 7,081 vehicles received an iZEV incentive.
Provincial distribution remained consistent from past months, with key provinces all recording significant gains.
Eligible deliveries in Quebec climbed to 3,518 from 2,296 in July; B.C. shipments surged to 1,669 from 999; and Ontario deliveries jumped to 1,373 from 758.
