Electric car sales in Europe are up, but Tesla has lost nearly half of the market
Despite a general decline in the EU car market, sales of electric cars in January 2025 grew by 34% compared to January 2024, reaching 15% of the market. But it was not good news for all manufacturers: Tesla lost 45% of sales and its market share fell from 1.8% to 1%.
Here's What We Know
According to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) in janvier 2025, the number of new car registrations in the EU fell by -2.6%. Notably, the decline was observed in the main markets of the bloc: France (-6.2%), Italy (-5.8%) and Germany (-2.8%). Spain, on the other hand, recorded a 5.3% increase.
However, despite the fall in the total number of registrations, the first month of the year was successful for electric vehicles. This segment grew by 34% to reach a market share of 15%.
Almost 65% of these new electric vehicles were purchased in Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium, where growth compared to janvier 2024 was 53.5%, 28.2% and 37.2% respectively.
New car registrations in the EU. Illustration: ACEA
Tesla is losing ground
In janvier, European sales for Elon Musk's company (Elon Musk) fell by a whopping 45.2 per cent. Just under 10,000 cars were sold compared to more than 18,000 in January 2024, and Tesla's market share fell from 1.8 per cent to 1 per cent.
In the EU's largest market, Germany, just 1,277 Tesla cars were sold, marking the weakest performance for this US brand in the country since July 2021. Sales also fell sharply (by 63%) in France.
According to our colleagues at InsideEVs, the reasons for this decline of Tesla may be the interference of Elon Musk in the political processes of European countries, as well as his support for Donald Trump. On top of that, the company is also experiencing a general decline in sales, partly caused by its relatively aging model lineup. However, an updated version of the Model Y crossover is coming soon, which could help improve the company's performance.
What's up with the competition?
While Tesla saw a downturn, other electric car makers saw positive numbers in January. MG, owned by China's SAIC, increased European registrations by 36.8 per cent. BMW also had a good January with a 36% increase in electric car registrations. The Bavarians delivered 13,715 battery cars, with registrations of the iX1 (the seventh most popular electric car in the EU in 2024), up 64% last month.
What about petrol and diesel cars?
The market share of petrol cars fell to 29.4% compared to 35.4% in the same month last year. Similarly, the diesel car segment declined by 27 per cent, resulting in a market share of just 10 per cent for diesel cars in janvier.
New car registrations in the EU in January by powertrain type. Illustration: ACEA
Plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) have not started 2025 well, with registrations falling 8.5 per cent in January, although they still accounted for 7.4 per cent of the monthly EU total. Self-driving hybrids and mild hybrids accounted for almost 35% of new car registrations last month.
