The question
The chart below shows the number of new cars sold in one country, by type of fuel, between 2010 and 2025.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
Year
- Petrol
- Diesel
- Hybrid
- Electric
| Year | Petrol | Diesel | Hybrid | Electric |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 880 thousand | 800 thousand | 15 thousand | 5 thousand |
| 2013 | 950 thousand | 860 thousand | 35 thousand | 15 thousand |
| 2016 | 1,020 thousand | 780 thousand | 80 thousand | 40 thousand |
| 2019 | 1,060 thousand | 440 thousand | 160 thousand | 90 thousand |
| 2022 | 820 thousand | 200 thousand | 300 thousand | 260 thousand |
| 2025 | 620 thousand | 70 thousand | 410 thousand | 500 thousand |
Key features to report
- Overview: petrol cars were the best-selling type throughout, but sales shifted sharply away from diesel towards hybrid and electric cars; total sales peaked in 2016 and then fell slightly.
- Total sales rose from 1.7 million in 2010 to 1.92 million in 2016, then fell to 1.6 million in 2025.
- Petrol sales peaked at 1.06 million in 2019 before dropping to 620,000.
- Diesel almost matched petrol in 2010 (800,000) but collapsed to only 70,000 by 2025.
- Hybrid and electric cars grew from 20,000 combined to more than half of all sales; electric sales rose a hundredfold to 500,000, overtaking hybrids (410,000).
Model answer
187 words · written by Abroadway to show band 9 features (not an official IELTS sample)
The stacked bar chart shows the number of new cars sold in one country between 2010 and 2025, divided into four fuel types.
Overall, total sales peaked in 2016 and then declined slightly. Throughout the period, petrol cars remained the single most popular type, but the market shifted dramatically away from diesel and towards hybrid and electric vehicles.
Total sales rose from 1.7 million in 2010 to a high of 1.92 million in 2016, before falling back to 1.6 million by 2025. Petrol car sales followed a broadly similar pattern, climbing from 880,000 to a peak of 1.06 million in 2019 and then dropping to 620,000. Diesel cars, which accounted for 800,000 sales in 2010, almost matching petrol, collapsed after 2016 to just 70,000 at the end of the period.
At the start of the period, hybrid and electric cars together made up only 20,000 sales, a tiny fraction of the market. However, both grew rapidly, especially after 2019. By 2025, electric car sales had reached 500,000, a hundredfold increase, overtaking hybrids at 410,000, and the two combined represented more than half of all new cars sold.
Useful language
- petrol
- diesel
- hybrid
- electric
- peaked
- collapsed
- hundredfold
- fuel types
- overall
Step-by-step method in the free lesson Bar charts and comparison language.
Write your own report and get a band estimate
Free, no account needed. Aim for 20 minutes and at least 150 words.