April Sales of Electric Cars Fall Despite High Gas Prices in USA

SEE ALSO: Electric Vehicles - Solution or Diversion?

Washington DC May 2, 2012; The AIADA newsletter reported that according to The Detroit News, electric vehicles had a mostly tough month in April despite near-record high gas prices.

About 3,500 electric vehicles were sold in April in the U.S., down from about 4,000 sold in March, the best-ever month for electric car sales.

General Motors Co. said it sold 1,462 Chevy Volts in April, up 200 percent from the 493 sold in April 2011, but down from the 2,289 sold in March 2012.

Nissan has sold 2,103 Leafs in the first four months of the year. That means Nissan needs to average more than 2,200 a month for the remainder of the year to hit the target. The Japanese automaker sold 9,679 Leafs in 2011.

Toyota Motor Corp. said it had its best-ever month for its Prius plug-in hybrid electric, nearly doubling sales in April to 1,654, up from 891 in March.

Mitsubishi sold 79 of its electric MiEV in April, up from 56 in March.

Ford Motor Co. sold no Focus Electrics for the third straight month.

For more on electric vehicle sales in April, and how they stack up against other months, click here.