The car year 2020

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The car year 2020

2020 was undoubtedly an extraordinary year – also in the automotive world. Numerous exciting innovations meet production stop and sales slump.

One of the most important innovations of 2020: The VW ID.3

Hardly any area of ​​life was spared: the corona pandemic has turned the world upside down. This also shaped the automotive year 2020. This was most visible at the beginning of March: the Geneva Motor Show was canceled at short notice. For the first time since 1946!
The exceptional situation was also clearly visible in the sales figures. Sales reached their low point at the end of April: just 9382 new cars were registered in April 2020; 67.2% less than in April 2019. A direct consequence of the lockdown: the dealers’ showrooms had to remain closed, numerous manufacturers stopped their production completely and the supplier industry was also no longer able to deliver without gaps. The market recovered somewhat over the course of the year; at the end of November there was a minus of 25% compared to the previous year. This makes 2020 the weakest year in Swiss car sales since the oil crisis in the 1970s. But a look at the statistics also reveals positive things: more than 54,000 cars with alternative drives, i.e. electric, hybrid, gas and hydrogen vehicles, had already been registered by the end of November. This corresponds to an increase of more than 62% compared to the previous year.
The rise of alternative drives is being fueled above all by the strong increase in plug-in hybrids (PHEV). These models have a conventional combustion engine in combination with an electric drive including a battery that can be charged at the socket. Depending on the model, distances of more than 70 kilometers are possible with purely electric drive. Thanks to the petrol tank, the driver is not dependent on a charging station on longer journeys. Of course, this type of drive only makes sense if it is used correctly and the battery is charged regularly for short trips. 11,435 cars with such a drive were registered by the end of November 2020; 246% more than last year!

Of course, this is mainly due to the strong growth in the range of PHEV vehicles: There are hardly any manufacturers who do not have such a model on offer. In almost every vehicle class, plug-in hybrids are among the innovations that hit the streets in 2020: from the compact Renault Megane to the popular Skoda Octavia and the large BMW X5: they are all now also available with rechargeable batteries. With the latest generation of PHEV models, the technical development is also clearly evident. Thanks to improved battery technology, most models can now drive at least 40 kilometers electrically – and thus achieve considerably low consumption in everyday life.

The car year 2020-year

According to the standard, the PHEV version of the BMW X5 can cover up to 87 kilometers purely electrically.

In order to comply with their CO2 balance, manufacturers are not only dependent on PHEV models, but also on pure electric cars. A clear increase can also be observed here: 14,861 pure electric vehicles were redeemed by the end of November; 44% more than last year. Finally, one of the most important innovations of the car year is a purely electric car: the ID.3 from VW. The manufacturer was still struggling with electronic problems and had to postpone the market launch. Even when it was launched on the market, not all problems were solved – and the ID.3 still does not arrive at the customer with all the promised functions; some things will be added later via software update. But with 659 registrations by the end of November, the ID.3 has definitely arrived in Switzerland – and plays an important role for VW. Because it is the first model on a platform specially developed for e-cars and is intended to transfer the brand and the group to e-mobility. There is more and more competition: with the Polestar2 and the Volvo XC40 Recharge, two interesting electric vehicles from Sweden came onto the market. The Renault Twingo electric lures with a sensationally low purchase price of less than 20,000 francs and Fiat has brought an extremely charming alternative to the market with the new 500e. Incidentally, the latter should have been presented at the Geneva Motor Show – but this presentation was not spared a cancellation either.

The car year 2020-2020

The Fiat 500e.

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