Renault and Volkswagen Celebrate Tesla’s Troubles!

If the European market ultimately holds up better than expected, Tesla is collapsing to the pleasure of European and Chinese brands.

In January 2025, the European car market, marked by a decline in Tesla sales, recorded a very slight decrease of 1.9% compared to the same period in 2024, with 993,680 passenger car registrations, according to data from JATO Dynamics covering 28 European markets. Vehicles with internal combustion engines and plug-in hybrids (PHEV) experienced the largest drops, with registrations decreasing by 10% and 6%, respectively. However, battery electric vehicles (BEV) saw a significant increase of 38%, with over 166,000 units registered.

Despite this growth in BEVs, Tesla experienced a collapse in sales, with only 9,913 registrations, a 45% decrease compared to January 2024. This decline is attributed to the transition to a new Model Y version and controversies related to the increased political involvement of its CEO. Although the Model Y was the best-selling model in Europe in 2023, its popularity seems to be waning. The latest version of the Model 3, launched in late 2023, also saw a 44% decline in January 2025.

The Chinese Celebrated

Meanwhile, Chinese brands saw their sales explode, with 37,134 vehicles registered, a 52% increase over January 2024. Their market share rose from 2.4% to 3.7%, placing them ahead of established brands like Ford. This progress is partly due to Chinese brands focusing on hybrids (HEV) to bypass European tariffs on BEVs. In January, nearly 7,500 Chinese HEVs were registered, representing 6.1% of this segment.

Volkswagen and Renault were the big winners in January, with respective increases of 5% and 7%. Volkswagen registered nearly 265,000 units thanks to the success of its SUVs and the ID.7. Renault, with 98,800 units, saw its SUVs grow by 48%. The Dacia Sandero remains the best-seller despite a 15% drop, followed by the Volkswagen Golf.

In contrast, models such as the Tesla Model Y, Peugeot 308, and Audi A3 experienced the largest declines among the top 50 registered models, while Kia Picanto, Dacia Duster, and more surprisingly, Volkswagen ID.7 showed the biggest gains.

READ ALSO: Tesla Model Y Test: Failure Forbidden!