German market rose 18% in July, boosted by EV demand

Sales of full-electric cars continued to grow in Germany, boosted by demand for EV-only brands Polestar, Tesla and MG Motor.

Battery-electric car registrations jumped 69 percent to 48,682 in Germany in July, giving the drivetrain a 20 percent market share, according to data from the German motor transport authority (KBA).

Overall registrations including gasoline and diesel vehicles rose 18 percent to 243,277.

July’s growth was driven by automakers gradually fulfilling their backlog of orders, which were caused when supply shortages lowered production, Reinhard Zirpel, who is president of the VDIK importers association, said.

The VDIK and the VDA auto industry group said sales were still well below pre-pandemic levels.

Winners

Polestar showed the highest growth, with sales up 442 percent. MG’s volume grew by 235 percent. Tesla sales were up 230 percent.

Among other brands, Ford’s registrations rose 44 percent, Mercedes-Benz by 29 percent, Audi by 23 percent, Hyundai by 14 percent, Kia by 11 percent, Porsche by 9.5 percent and BMW by 9.4 percent.

VW brand saw registrations rise by 8.3 percent. The marque remained Germany’s top-selling brand with a 17.8 percent market share.

Chinese newcomers made inroads, with BYD’s registrations at 402 for the month. Great Wall Motor, which owns the Ora and Wey brands, sold 221 cars.

Losers

Citroen was among July’s sales losers with registrations down 26 percent. Jaguar was down 24 percent and Dacia’s volume dropped by 2 percent.

Sales of gasoline cars increased 13 percent for a 34.3 percent market share. Diesel sales rose 2.7 percent for a 17.5 percent share.

Plug-in hybrid registrations fell by 40 percent.

Through July, the German market is up 14 percent to 1.64 million.