Electric car sales surging in South America, Chinese brands are leading, not Tesla
Electric vehicle sales are rising rapidly across South America, and Chinese automakers—not Tesla—are driving the shift. Companies such as BYD, Geely, Chery and GWM are expanding at remarkable speed across the region, helped by lower prices, quicker delivery times and China’s new megaport in Peru.
In 2019, Peruvian renewable-energy entrepreneur Luis Zwiebach travelled to California just to test-drive a Tesla because the company had no presence in his country. Today, the situation has flipped. Chinese models now dominate Peruvian showrooms, often costing around 60% of Tesla’s price, while Tesla still has no dealership in the country, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.
Chinese brands have transformed the market by opening dozens of dealerships, offering competitive financing options and making EV ownership more accessible. In Peru, sales of electric and hybrid cars reached a record 7,256 units in the first nine months of 2025, up 44% from last year. Demand has grown so quickly that Zwiebach, whose company installs solar panels, now provides EV chargers for clients in multiple cities, noting that charging an electric car at home is “just like plugging in a phone.”
The surge is not limited to Peru. Chile, Brazil, and Uruguay are experiencing a similar shift. EVs accounted for more than 10% of new vehicle registrations in Chile, nearly 10% in Brazil, and an impressive 28% in Uruguay—the highest rate in the region. In several of these markets, Chinese brands have also become dominant in gasoline-powered cars. Uruguay’s car market, for example, has been reshaped so dramatically that BYD is now the country’s third-largest overall automaker. Dealers say Chinese EVs offer a strong combination of affordability and reliability, with entry models in Uruguay starting at $19,000.
A major driver of this boom is China’s new Port of Chancay on the Peruvian coast, which has quickly become a gateway for Chinese vehicles entering South America. Each arriving ship typically carries between 800 and 1,200 cars, and about 19,000 vehicles are expected to pass through the port this year alone. From there, cars are distributed to Chile, Ecuador, and Colombia. July was a record month, with more than 3,000 new vehicles entering the port—almost four times the number seen in January.
Beyond imports, Chinese automakers are expanding their footprint inside South America. BYD has begun assembling electric vehicles at a former Ford factory in Brazil’s Bahia state, while GWM has launched partial production at a former Mercedes-Benz site. Both companies aim to export cars from Brazil by 2027, using trade agreements across Latin America. Yet this expansion has also stirred tension. Brazilian industry groups accuse Chinese automakers of flooding the market with low-cost imports instead of prioritizing local job creation. In response, Brazil is gradually reinstating tariffs, which are set to reach 35% by 2026.
Despite challenges such as limited charging infrastructure and long distances between major cities, electric vehicles continue gaining momentum across South America. For many consumers, the affordability of Chinese EVs and lower maintenance costs outweigh concerns about new technology. “The price is lower, and it never needs the service garage,” Zwiebach said. With China strengthening both its import pipelines and local production, the future of South America’s auto market appears increasingly electric—and increasingly shaped by Chinese companies.
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