The collapse in demand for electric cars is causing the German market to slide into the red. Around 2.8 million new cars were registered in 2024, 1 percent less than in the previous year, as the Federal Motor Transport Authority announced on Monday.
This means that the pre-Corona level is moving further away: in the pre-crisis year of 2019, more than a quarter more new cars were sold. For electric cars alone, the decline was 27.4 percent. Hybrids, on the other hand, were in demand: every third vehicle now has one Germany via such a drive in which the gasoline engine is combined with an electric motor. Gasoline cars were also sold more frequently than a year ago.
CO₂ emissions are increasing
The comeback of combustion engines is reflected in average CO₂ emissions, which rose by 4.2 percent to 119.8 grams per kilometer. Significantly stricter CO₂ limits apply in the EU this year. If emissions do not fall this year, car companies will face drastic fines.
Experts assume that this will not be possible without higher sales of electric cars. The Association of Car Importers VDIK assumes that things will improve this year and expects new registrations to increase to 2.85 million.
The forecast is based on the new federal government improving the framework conditions for electromobility, said the new VDIK President Imelda Labbe. “Without further significant incentives to ramp up electromobility, there will likely be no further growth in battery-electric vehicles in 2025. The result would then be a decline in the overall market to around 2.7 million cars.”
Demands on Brussels
At the same time, Labbe called on the EU Commission to make concessions. “Penalties would lead to further restrictions on investments in automotive transformation. This must be prevented with all our might,” said Labbe.
VW recorded a 3.4 percent increase in sales among German brands last year. The Wolfsburg-based company maintained its position as market leader with a market share of 19.1 percent. Skoda from the VW Group even managed an increase of a good fifth, Porsche increased by 9.9 percent.
Opel, part of the Stellantis Group, sold 2 percent more vehicles and thus achieved a market share of 5.2 percent. The Astra was particularly in demand, said Opel brand boss Patrick Dinger. This provides a tailwind for a confident start to the new year.
Also among the winners was Toyota: The Japanese are known for their hybrid vehicles and sold more than a quarter more cars than a year ago. Also the French brands Peugeot and Citroën were popular with customers. The German manufacturers Mercedes, BMW and especially that Volkswagen-Daughter Audi However, fewer cars were sold on the domestic market than in the previous year.