Volkswagen dominates European new car sales as BEVs drive growth

Volkswagen was Europe’s best-selling automotive brand in April, registering almost 106,000 cars, nearly double that of Audi in second place, according to new figures from Jato Dynamics.

European new passenger cars registrations totalled 960,191 units in the month – an increase of 16% marking a ninth consecutive month of growth.

Felipe Munoz, global analyst at Jato Dynamics, said: “These results are directly related to the easing of supply chain pressures which has increased the availability of new cars.

“On top of this, demand has continued to rise in response to the push from OEMs to widen their EV offering.”

The positive results last month are largely owed to the increasing demand for BEVs (battery electric vehicles), which represented 13% of the total volume – an increase of almost three percentage points compared to April 2022.

Munoz continued: “Tesla and MG fuelled the growth of BEVs last month. Consumers appear to be responding well to wider competitive offers and good deals presented by the two OEMs.”

Volkswagen Group led the BEV rankings with an increase in registrations of 98% to almost 31,900 units – more than double the 14,200 units registered by Tesla – up by 865%.

Stellantis was in second place but lost ground due to a significantly smaller increase in BEV volumes of just 5%.

Geely, and the remaining Chinese manufacturers combined, also performed well registering a total 8,334 and 7,114 units respectively.

Stellantis, Volkswagen Group, and Geely also led in registrations of PHEVs (plug-in hybrid electric vehicles). Demand for these vehicles remained stable with a total of 71,960 registered units.

Marginal market share for Chinese-made cars

Last month, vehicles manufactured in China accounted for just 3.4% of all new vehicle registrations with a total of nearly 32,000 units.

This figure includes vehicles produced by Chinese OEMs and vehicles produced by Western OEMs in China such as the BMW iX3, Smart 1, Polestar 2, Dacia Spring, and Citroën C5 X.

Munoz said: “In contrast to the emerging narrative, China’s carmakers are gaining traction less quickly than many have predicted.

“While analysts anticipated a more dramatic untick in demand, there remains a need to increase awareness and shift perceptions for these vehicles to become popular with consumers.”

SUVs growth continues

SUV registrations totalled just over 492,000 units in April to reach a record market share of 51.3% - an increase 0.7 percentage points when compared with April 2022.

Volkswagen Group, Stellantis, and Hyundai-Kia dominated the segment. The SUV model ranking was led by the Volkswagen T-Roc, Toyota Yaris Cross, Dacia Duster, Kia Sportage, and Hyundai Tucson.

Dacia Sandero leads the way

The Dacia Sandero led the overall model ranking with almost 18,700 units – an increase of 44%.

The hatchback was the most-registered car in Belgium and Ireland, and the second most-registered in Portugal and Spain. Dacia also saw a 147% increase in registrations of the Jogger with a total of 7,237 units, boosting the brand’s total volume by 44%.

Further down the ranking, the Tesla Model Y occupied the 17th position with 10,600 registered units, retaining its’ position as the most registered vehicle year-to-date. Registrations of the MG ZS increased by 125% to 6,930 units, while the Volkswagen ID4 and Renault Megane rose by 125% and 157% respectively.

Among the latest launches, Renault registered 6,135 units of the Austral, while MG registered 4,174 units of the MG 4 – the sixth best-selling BEV in April.

Alfa Romeo registered 3,235 units of the Tonale, accounting for 71% of the brand’s total volume.

BMW registered 2,355 units of the iX1 – the brand’s second best-selling BEV behind the i4.