Electric Vehicle Models Top 5 Vehicle Classes in California

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As just covered, Tesla was the third best selling auto brand in California last year and the Tesla Model Y topped the overall model sales ranking. That also meant that it topped any vehicle class it was put in, and that it topped the overall SUV/truck sales ranking. The Model 3 couldn’t quite live up to that standard, but it did come in second place among all cars.

Some other electric vehicles deserve attention and praise for their performances in their vehicle segments as well. In fact, in three other vehicle classes, EV models topped the charts. And in some other categories, EVs made the top five. Let’s have a look at all of these rankings.

Note: Underneath the static images below, I am also including embedded interactive versions. Some may be able to view the static images better, and some may be able to view the embedded ones better.

Well, we do have to start with the top performers, and I have not yet published this chart on the five top selling luxury compact SUVs in California. The Tesla Model Y is, well, in a world of its own here.

Similarly, to say that the Tesla Model 3 dominates the “near luxury car” segment would be a severely harsh understatement. It’s also nice to see that another EV, the BMW i4, gets into the top three in this category.

Leaving Tesla’s dynamic duo, we have two electric vehicles topping the chart for the best selling 2-row midsize SUVs. The Honda Prologue, despite being a late entrant from Honda and one primarily developed by GM, takes the gold medal here, while the Ford Mustang Mach-E takes the silver.

A bit of a step down volume wise and a step up in terms of vehicle size and cost, the Rivian R1S is the king of the large luxury SUV class. There’s also an electric version of the #4 Cadillac Escalade on the market.

EVs take 1st place and 5th place in the subcompact luxury SUV class, with the Mercedes EQB at the top of the chart here and then the Audi Q4 e-tron sneaking onto the chart.

Talking about a much more high-volume category, the Hyundai IONIQ 5 is actually the best selling EV here. The Chevrolet Equinox is just above it, but that includes a gas-powered version. The electric version of the Equinox sold a bit more than the gas version, so I have given the model the red color here, but the IONIQ 5 had more than 7,000 more sales than the Equinox EV.

The Audi Q6 e-tron and Tesla Model X did break onto the top 5 chart for the midsize luxury SUV category, but they were well below the gas-powered competition — and the Model X is being discontinued, unfortunately, so we won’t be seeing it here anymore soon.

In the limited but fun luxury and high-end sports car category, the Lucid Air took the silver medal and the BMW i5 was just barely off the podium.

Last but not … well, yes, least in terms of straight volume terms … we’ve got the Volkswagen ID. Buzz coming in 5th in the minivan market. (How much competition is there in this market? Probably not much, but a top 5 ranking is a top 5 ranking. And if the Buzz could see only ten times more sales … it could be in 2nd place.)

It will be interesting to see how these rankings change in 2026. Any brilliant guesses?