- Newcomer from Jaecoo tops Kiwi sales charts for April.
- EV market down compared to May, but double the same month last year.
- Zeekr and Tesla BEVs also top performers.
Jaecoo's new J5 compact-SUV has sparked lots of interest among Kiwi buyers: it was the top-selling battery electric vehicle (BEV, or pure-electric) in New Zealand last month, with 89 registrations. With sales kicking off in May, it's also now in the top-10 BEVs year-to-date (just).
Looking a bit like a Range Range Sport viewed from very, very far away (Jaecoo's parent brand Chery has tie-ups with Jaguar Land Rover, so we guess that's okay), the J5 is a budget baby-SUV that sells in a single specification for just $42,990.
It has 59kWh battery and claimed range of 402km. The single electric motor drives the front wheels and makes 155kW/288Nm. According to Jaecoo, one of the model's main features is "pet friendly" seats made of special silicone-based material, which is antibacterial and wear resistant.
As previously reported, NZ's BEV market share in April was down from May's 16.2% but still a healthy 11.% (more than double April 2025).
The other top BEV performers in April were the Zeekr 7X (83), Tesla Model Y (72), Kia EV3 (71) and Dongfeng Box (65).
BYD had three models in the top 10 for the month (Atto 1, Sealion 7 and Atto 2) and remained NZ's top BEV brand for April (152). It also remains the top BEV brand year-to-date with 940 registrations, leading Tesla (680) and Dongfeng (499).
NZ TOP-SELLING BEVS YEAR-TO-DATE
Tesla Model Y (585)
Dongfeng Box (348)
BYD Atto 1 (307)
BYD Atto 2 (253)
MG ZS EV (240)
Zeekr 7X (222)
BYD Sealion 7 (207)
Kia EV3 (171)
BYD Atto 3 (154)
Jaecoo J5 (124)