In 2024, new car registrations rose slightly, increasing by 0.8% to around 10.6 million units. Spain continued to show resilience with a solid 7.1% growth rate. In contrast, declines were observed in France (-3.2%), Germany (-1%), and Italy, with a slight drop of 0.5%.
In December 2024, new EU car registrations rose by 5.1%. Spain led the way with a robust double-digit 28.8% increase, followed by France with a modest 1.5% rise. However, among the four largest EU markets, declines were observed in Germany (-7.1%) and Italy (-4.9%).
Battery-electric cars remained the third most popular choice for buyers in 2024. In December, their market share stood at 15.9%, contributing to a 13.6% share for the entire year, again surpassing diesel, which declined to 11.9%. Gasoline cars retained their lead at 33.3%, while hybrid-electric cars strengthened their second position, commanding a 30.9% market share.

By power source
Battery-electric car registrations fell by 10.2% to 144,367 units in December 2024. This decline was primarily driven by a significant decrease in registrations in Germany (-38.6%) and France (-20.7%), leading to a 5.9% decrease in market volume for 2024 compared to 2023. As a result, the total market share for battery-electric cars stood at 13.6% for 2024.
Of course, there are member states that, for different reasons, still augment their EV rate. In Belgium, for example, the BEV registrations went up by 36.9%, in Cyprus by 51.4%, in Czechia by 63.5%, in Denmark by 42.2%, in Greece by 36.5%, in Hungary by 47.7%, in Luxembourg by 15.8%, in Malta by 90.5%, in the Netherlands by 16%, in Portugal by 14.7%, and in Spain by 11.2%. Also, in the UK, there was an increase of 21.4%.
Plug-in hybrid car registrations rose by 4.9% last month, driven by significant increases in France (44.9%) and Germany (6.8%). In December, plug-in hybrids accounted for 8.3%, maintaining the same level as the previous year. However, year-total volumes for 2024 were down by 6.8% compared to 2023.
Hybrid-electric registrations increased by 33.1% in December, with a market share rising to 33.6%, up from 26.5% last December. They exceeded gasoline car registrations for the fourth consecutive month.
In December 2024, gasoline car registrations dropped by 1.8%, with all significant markets showing declines except Spain, which saw an increase of 16%. France experienced the steepest drop, with registrations plummeting by 23%, followed by Italy with an 11.4% decline.
Germany also recorded a decrease of 7.4%. With 269,260 new cars registered last month, gasoline’s market share dropped to 29.6%, down from 31.6% in the same month the previous year.
The diesel car market declined by 15%, resulting in a 9.8% market share for diesel vehicles last December. Overall, double-digit declines were observed in most EU markets.
By brand
First, something never imagined a year ago: in December, the Renault Group surpassed Stellantis and was the number two car seller in the EU with a market share of 13.2% compared to 12.2% for Stellantis. Of course, the Volkswagen Group stayed comfortably in the lead, resulting in twice the market share of the second, 26.3%.
Also noticeable is that the Toyota Group confirms its fourth place and pushes the Hyundai Group into fifth. Sixth and seventh are, as always, BMW Group (7.2% market share) and Mercedes-Benz (6.2%).
The full-year results are more interesting overall. As always, Volkswagen Group stays first and even increases its market share in 2024, from 26.1 to 26.7%, by selling 3.2% more cars. Stellantis Group is the big loser at the top of the ranking, selling 7.2% fewer cars in the EU and losing 1.4% of the market share (from 17.8% to 16.4%).
In 2024, the Renault Group sold 1.9% more cars and has an 11% market share. Toyota Group (+17.5 % in sales) has now reached fourth position, with a 1.2 increase in its market share (6.9% to 8.1%). Hyundai Group (5.8% in sales) saw its market share decrease (8.4% to 7.8%) and is now fifth.
Sixth is the BMW Group with a 6.8% market share (-0.1%), and seventh is Mercedes-Benz with a 5.4% share (-0.2%). Ford stays number eight but loses 13.7% in sales and 0.5% in market share (3.4% to 2.9%). Volvo Cars has installed itself in ninth position with 28% better sales and a market share increasing from 2.1 %to 2.7%. The tenth is Tesla, with a market share down from 2.7% to 2.3% due to a decrease in sales of 13.7%.
After the top ten, we see a successful year for Suzuki (12th) with a 1.6% market share, directly followed by SAIC (13th, 1.5% share), still the only Chinese brand in the top 15. Finally, Mitsubishi and Honda saw their sales increase last year by 43.7% and 21.5%, respectively, resulting in a 0.5% and a 0.4% market share.
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