Volkswagen Outsells Tesla In Germany's EV Market Through July

1 year, 4 months ago - 10. August 2023, Inside EVs

ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo sales have picked up steam after the production ramp and likely tipped the scales in VW's favor.

Volkswagen has reclaimed the EV sales crown in Germany in the first seven months of the year, overtaking Tesla and the trio of premium domestic brands – Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and BMW.

VW edged past Tesla in electric car registrations from January through July, thanks to added volume from its newly launched models, especially the ID. Buzz passenger van and its commercial variant, the ID. Buzz Cargo.

According to data from Germany's Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) shared by Automobilwoche (via Electrek), Volkswagen sold 41,475 electric vehicles in Germany through July, while Tesla sold 40,289 units. Each of the two brands sold more than twice as many EVs as Mercedes-Benz, which took third place with 20,613 registrations.

Audi and BMW were fourth and fifth with 16,786 and 15,987 registrations, respectively, with Hyundai a close sixth with 15,411 registrations.

The all-electric Volkswagen ID. Buzz is seeing increased customer interest since its launch last year as production ramps up. The automaker sold 2,815 ID. Buzz EVs in Germany in the first seven months, including 536 in July alone.

While the ID. Buzz made up less than 7 percent of the brand's EV registrations in Germany during the period, it was likely the model that tipped the scale in Volkswagen's favor.

As expected, the Volkswagen ID.4 and its coupe-styled sibling, the ID.5 – including their GTX performance variants – made up the majority of the brand's EV registrations, totaling 22,405 units through July. The smaller ID.3 hatchback was next with 13,647 registrations, while the e-up city car had 2,943 registrations.

As for Tesla, the Model Y made up almost 75 percent of the brand's registrations in Germany – 29,829 through seven months. The Model 3 was second with 9,045 registrations, while the Model S and Model X trailed far behind with 855 and 494 registrations, respectively.

Mercedes-Benz's EV registrations were led by the EQA compact crossover with 7,813. Interestingly, Chinese-owned brands are growing quickly in the German market, with SAIC's MG racking up 11,638 registrations, Geely’s Polestar 4,210, and BYD 632.

In total, there were 268,926 first registrations for electric vehicles in Germany between January and July, compared to 1.64 million new registrations for internal combustion engine models.