Sales of electric cars continue to grow at breakneck speed in Europe, and 2025 looks set to be a pivotal year for electromobility.
According to the latest figures from theEuropean Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, sales of 100% electric cars (BEVs) rose by 26.4% between January and April, reaching more than 558,000 registrations. This now represents 15.3% of the total new car market, up sharply on last year. In Western Europe as a whole, the market share of electric vehicles has even risen to 18.4%, compared with 14.3% for the same period in 2024. Hybrids saw an increase of 20.8%, with France the leading market, where sales rose by 44.9% over the year.
This growth can be explained by a rather favourable context. Despite the end of the ZFE in France, European regulations continue to put pressure on manufacturers to reduce their emissions. At the same time, the catalogue of electric models available on the Old Continent is becoming increasingly extensive, with more than 160 new models already available or planned for 2025, according to the Financial Times. Added to this are the various bonuses and reductions still in force in many European countries, as well as a growing interest among customers in electric and hybrid vehicles, which are certainly more fuel-efficient, but also less expensive to run.
Spain takes second place, France votes for Renault
The example chosen by ECO MOTORS NEWS to illustrate the breakthrough in car sales in Europe in the first half of 2025 is Spain. A country that has been slow to embrace electrification, but whose momentum seems to be firmly established: sales of electrified cars jumped by 72% in the first five months of the year, according to Reuters. This spectacular growth was driven by the massive arrival of Chinese models on the market: MG grew by 87%, Omoda by 213% and BYD saw its sales soar by 745%!
In France, it is hybrids that are driving the electrification of the car fleet, as we saw in the introduction. But what’s most interesting is to look at the rankings for the best-selling electric cars in France in the first quarter. The Renault 5 E-Tech, launched at the beginning of the year, is by far the best-selling electric car. At the end of April, it was ahead of the Citroën e-C3 and… the Scénic, also from Renault. In fact, the French manufacturer with the diamond-shaped badge has regained first place in the national ranking of electric car sales, with a 16.9% market share, ahead of Tesla, whose Model Y was relegated to fourth place, ahead of two Peugeot models. It’s clear that the French market is particularly keen on Renault, but also on French manufacturers in general.
Electric car sales: Tesla begins to share the cake
As we have seen, despite good sales figures in the electrified vehicle market, Tesla, long the undisputed leader, is experiencing a marked slowdown across Europe. The American manufacturer has seen BYD overtake it on the Old Continent. In addition to the antics of its founder, Elon Musk, some observers explain this fall in sales by a lack of diversity in the products on offer, but also by the electrification of the market, which is seeing more and more electric (and hybrid) models competing with the American giant, which nevertheless remains well positioned and whose 2025 Model Y is a benchmark.
The year 2025 marks a turning point in the European automotive landscape. On the one hand, electric cars are making their mark at a rapid pace, and on the other, the market no longer resembles a Tesla monopoly, but rather a diversification, or even an upheaval, of the hierarchy of manufacturers in Europe. The Renault 5 E-Tech is a symbol of this successful transition in France.
