Sales of electric vehicles aren't setting the world on fire by any means. But EVs outsold vehicles with manual transmissions in the U.S. last year for the first time, in a battle between one technology that's up-and-coming and another that's fading fast.
EV sales totaled about 270,000 in 2019, representing 1.6 percent of the market, compared with 1.1 percent for stick-shift cars and trucks, according to Green Car Reports, which cited J.D. Power data from its Power Information Network.
In 2018, manuals were at 1.6 percent while EVs were at 1.5 percent — meaning EV sales didn't rise so much as manual sales continued to plummet.
Few vehicles are even offered with a manual transmission anymore. The new midengine Chevrolet Corvette, for example, is sold only with an automatic.
Meanwhile, dozens of EVs are heading to dealerships in the coming years, ensuring that they'll continue to leave stick shifts in their emissions-free dust from now on.
