European Electric Vehicle Market Reaches Historic Highs with Volkswagen's Rise and Tesla's Decline

Last month, electric vehicles accounted for 16.9% of total registrations, marking an increase of 2.7 percentage points in market share compared to March 2024, with a year-on-year growth of 23%. In terms of registered units, this was the strongest quarter for BEVs recorded.

The European electric vehicle market reached historic highs in March, despite a decline in sales from Tesla, the world's largest electric car manufacturer by volume, according to data firm Jato Dynamics.

Specifically, in March 2025, 240,892 battery electric vehicles (BEVs) were sold in Europe, a 23% increase compared to the same month the previous year. This marks the second-best result recorded for this propulsion system, following December 2022, when 275,108 units were registered.

At the same time, 570,943 electric cars were sold in the first quarter across the 28 European markets analysed, an annual increase of 28%.

Amidst this landscape, Tesla—the largest global electric car manufacturer by sales volume in 2024—recorded a 30% drop in registrations.

This was the most significant decline among the top 30 brands by registrations, surpassed only by Mitsubishi (33rd position, -43%), Lancia (41st, -73%), Jaguar (-82%), Smart (-65%), Maserati (-39%), and Abarth (-75%).

Despite the negative trend, Jato Dynamics explains that the 30% drop experienced in March was less severe than those recorded in January (-47%) and February (-44%). While the Model Y (-49%) and Model 3 (-14%) saw notable declines between January and March, they managed to outperform all other electric cars in Europe.

The Volkswagen ID.4 ranked third thanks to a remarkable 115% increase in registrations, but remained 2,000 units behind the Model 3.

On the other hand, the general car market showed signs of recovery in March, according to Jato Dynamics. New passenger car registrations totalled 1.42 million units, a 3.2% increase compared to March 2024.

These results helped offset the declines recorded in January and February, allowing the first quarter to close with a total of 3.383 million units registered, close to the 3.384 million units registered in the same quarter the previous year.

According to the company's data, the UK was the main driver of growth, being the largest market during the month, with a 13% increase in volume. Increases were also recorded in Italy and Spain, while Germany and France experienced declines, with drops of 3.9% and 15%, respectively.

Another point highlighted by Jato Dynamics is that in March, the Dacia Sandero, which had maintained the top spot as the best-selling car in Europe for the year, according to the company's data, was surpassed by the Peugeot 208.

Its rival, belonging to the multinational group Stellantis, registered 25,741 units, a 7% year-on-year increase, while the model from the Renault Group brand sold 24,557 units, a 6% decrease.

Despite the change in leadership, the Sandero maintained its lead during the quarter, followed by the 208 in second place. Among the top 10, the Volkswagen Tiguan (19,591 units) saw a 42% increase in registrations, while the Peugeot 2008 (19,837 units; +9%) and the Opel/Vauxhall Corsa (+8%; 20,143 units) also performed well.

Jato Dynamics highlights that these vehicles did not make it into the 'top 10' in March 2024, when the positions were held by the Tesla Model Y, the Citroën C3, and the Toyota Yaris.

Other models highlighted by Jato Dynamics for the month included the MG ZS, whose success was driven by the launch of its new generation, now available exclusively as a full hybrid, rather than electric.

"The initial success of the MG ZS is an example of how Chinese manufacturers are adjusting their strategies in response to the EU tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles," said Jato Dynamics global analyst Felipe Muñoz.

Other models that also recorded significant growth included the Peugeot 3008 (+60%), the Seat/Cupra León (+28%), the Jeep Avenger (+56%), the Skoda Kodiaq (+34%), and the Suzuki Swift (+54%).

Among the latest market entries, MG registered nearly 9,800 units of the MG3, which is also powered by a hybrid engine. Renault closely followed with 9,330 units of the new Symbioz, while Fiat/Abarth registered 8,000 units of the 600.

The Volkswagen ID.7 emerged as the fourth most registered electric vehicle in March, with 7,438 units, closely followed by the Kia EV3 with 7,173 units.

BYD registered 7,144 registrations, with more than 6,500 of them being plug-in hybrids. Jaecoo, on the other hand, registered 7,000 units of the Jaecoo 7, despite it not being available as an electric or plug-in hybrid.

"Interestingly, the same number of units was registered for the Renault 5 (6,996 units in March), which ranked as the eighth most popular electric car so far this year (16,948 units)," concludes the report.