The new EU passenger car market shows notable resilience. According to the European Association of Car Manufacturers (ACEA), car registrations rose 9.3% in September and 5.7% year-to-date, despite a challenging macroeconomic environment marked by persistently rising energy prices and geopolitical headwinds.

Demand for a range of electrified vehicles remained strong, particularly in major European markets, supported by buyer support measures and a broader model offering. Hybrid-electric vehicles ranked as the most popular powertrain choice among buyers (36.3%), whereas battery-electric cars and plug-in hybrids accounted for 22.7% and 10.1% of the EU market, respectively.

By power source

By September 2026, battery-electric cars accounted for 22.7% of the EU market, up from 16.1% a year earlier. Hybrid-electric car registrations captured 36.3% of the market, remaining consumers’ preferred choice in the EU. Meanwhile, the combined market share of petrol and diesel cars fell to 28.2%, down from 36.9% a year earlier.

Electric

In September alone, 290,117 BEVs were registered, and that’s a whopping 72.9% more than in September 2025. BEVs represented 32.7% of total sales last month.

In the first nine months of 2026, 1,931,465 new battery-electric cars were registered (+48.5%), capturing 22.7% of the EU market and establishing them as the second most popular powertrain choice year-to-date.

Three of the four largest EU markets, which together accounted for 64% of all battery-electric car registrations, recorded strong growth: France (+79.1%), Germany (+58.1%), and Denmark (+40.3%). Belgium also posted a more moderate 15.7% increase.

Hybrid

September 2026 YTD’s figures also showed new EU hybrid-electric car registrations rising to 3,090,530 units, supported by growth in Italy (+20.8%) and Spain (+20.5%), alongside more modest gains in Germany (+4.9%) and France (+0.6%). Overall, hybrid-electric models accounted for 36.3% of the total EU market. In September, hybrid cars still rose 7.3% year on year.

Plug-in-hybrid electric car registrations continued to grow, reaching 860,257 units in January-September 2026 (+18.6%). Rising volumes in key markets such as Italy (+72.4%), Spain (+34.7%), and Germany (+13.7%) drove this underlying trend. New plug-in-hybrid electric cars accounted for 10.1% of EU registrations, up from 9% in the same period in 2025. In September, the growth (year-on-year) was 11.7%.

Petrol and diesel

By the end of September 2026, petrol car registrations continued to decline, falling by 19.1%, with significant downturns across all major European markets. France saw the sharpest decline, with volumes plunging by 36.1%, while other key markets also posted double-digit losses: Germany (-22.7%), Spain (-19%), and Italy (-16.4%).

With 1,802,078 new cars registered over the past nine months, petrol’s market share dropped to 21.2% from 27.7% last year. Additionally, the diesel car market continued its downward trend, with registrations down 19.5% and at 7.1% of new EU car registrations, down from 9.3%.

Outside the EU,  but also in Europe

Across the EFTA countries (Iceland, Norway, Switzerland) and the UK, we see the same overall trends, but there are, of course, regional differences. In Iceland and Norway, BEV sales increase while all other categories decline. In the first 9 months, Norway registered 112,826 new BEVs, and that’s 97.9% of total registrations. In Switzerland, hybrids also rose, especially PHEVs (+14.8%). Hybrids remain the biggest group there.

In the UK, full-electric sales rose 30.2% in the first nine months, and PHEV sales rose even more (+41.8%). Normal hybrids remain the biggest group and still saw their sales numbers rise (+7%). Petrol (-12%) and diesel (-21%) continued to decline. In market share, hybrids lead (36.7%), followed by full-electric (26.2%), petrol (21.3%), and plug-in hybrids (14.1%).  With only 30,377 diesel cars sold from January to September, diesel now represents just 1.7% of total sales.

By make

In September, Volkswagen Group remained the biggest seller but saw its market share drop 3.4 points from the same month last year, as sales fell 4.1% in a rising market. Stellantis Group, second, is recovering, selling 4.7% more cars in September. So did number three, Renault Group, which increased sales by 1.8% despite a 10.1% decline in Dacia sales. Toyota Group is fourth (+2.1% in sales), and Hyundai Group is fifth (+4.8%).

Close behind is BMW (6th, +0.9% in sales), followed by Mercedes-Benz (7th, +4%). Tesla made a remarkable comeback: with sales up 78.6%, it ranks eighth. Chinese manufacturers now occupy ninth and tenth place: Geely Group saw sales rise 33.2% in September, and BYD rose a whopping 111.4%.

SAIC Motor is the next Chinese manufacturer, in 11th place (+24.8% in sales), while Chery Automobile (12th, +223.8%) pushed Ford toward 13th place. Mazda (+47.4%) jumped over Nissan for 14th place; Suzuki is 16th, but sees Leapmotor (+255.7% in sales) already fully in the rearview mirror. Honda (18th, +15.2% in sales) has overtaken Jaguar Land Rover despite its 26.7% sales increase. In place at twenty, Mitsubishi increased sales by 6.8%.

Cumulated

With 26.2% market share, Volkswagen Group still dominated the EU market in the first three quarters of 2026, but it lost 1.3 points compared to last year. Stellantis gained sales (+5.1%) and remained solidly in second place with 15.8% market share. Renault Group lost sales (-3.5%) due to Dacia (-9.9%) and saw its market share fall from 11.4% to 10.4%.

Toyota Group and Hyundai Group are in a very tight battle (both have 7% market share), but the Japanese sold a few thousand more cars. BMW is a close follower, increasing sales by 4.6% and reaching a 6.9% market share. Mercedes-Benz is seventh, with a 5% share and a 3.6% sales increase, followed by Geely Group (2.8%, +10.6% in sales) and BYD (2.4%, +154.4% in sales). Ford remains tenth with a 2.3% market share (down from 2.9%, -17.6% in sales).

Tesla (2.2%, +68.9% in sales) and SAIC Motor (2.2%, +20.4% in sales) are threatening Ford for tenth place. Nissan (1.7%, -6.1% in sales) comes just before Chery Automobile (1.6%, +246.5% sales increase). Suzuki (1.3%) and Mazda (1.2%) are following. Leapmotor nearly reaches 1% market share with a +393.6% sales increase; Honda (0.5%), JLR (0.5%), and Mitsubishi (0.4%) close the ranks.