2:48 pm, June 29, 2023
Tesla’s price cuts helped it become the best-performing OEM in Europe last month.
That’s according to latest figures from Jato Dynamics, which recorded overall new vehicle sales of 1,116,472 cars across 28 European markets in May – an 18 per cent rise on the 943,435 figure for May 2022.
It takes the total number of new cars sold so far this year in Europe to 5.3m, which is up 17 per cent on the same period in 2022.
However, it fell short of the 6.93m units registered over the same period in 2019 and was similar to 2021’s levels when markets were hit by the semiconductor shortage while still recovering from lockdowns.
Tesla won a record volume of 2.63 per cent of the market last month, shifting 29,362 units, versus just 0.15 per cent in May 2022, which was caused by supply issues.
Its Model Y, pictured at the top of this story, was the best-performing battery-electric vehicle (BEV) with 21,530 units sold – up by a whopping 1,838 per cent versus May 2022.
Felipe Munoz, global analyst at Jato Dynamics, said: ‘The popularity of the Model Y has been confirmed in Europe, and it stands a good chance of leading both the European and global model ranking by the end of the year.’
He added: ‘By making use of incentives and good market position, Tesla has been able to outperform its rivals, while part of the brand’s success is also explained by continuous price cuts.’
Commenting on the overall figures, Munoz said: ‘While BEVs and SUVs continue to drive the recovery of the industry, growth across all segments has not been enough to bring total volume back to pre-pandemic levels.’
Total BEV registrations rose by 65 per cent in May to 169,091 units, accounting for 15 per cent of all new vehicle registrations.
In addition to the success of the Model Y – Europe’s best-selling car between January and May – the market is also being shaken by Car Dealer Power Car of the Year 2023 the MG 4.
It secured a record third position in the BEV ranking by model with 6,310 units, ahead of its rival the Volkswagen ID.3 at 5,529 units, which was in sixth place.
Volkswagen’s ID.4 was the second most-popular BEV of the month with 8,543 units sold.
In fourth place was the Tesla Model 3 (6,204), while fifth was the Fiat 500 (6,073).
Meanwhile, the low-cost Dacia Sandero again secured the top spot in the overall ranking by model with more than 21,745 units, with sales boosted by strong increases in key markets including France, Italy, Spain and Germany.
Munoz said: ‘While the Model Y plays its role in the electric high-end EV segments, the Sandero has continued to gain traction in the low-end ICE segments.’
Among the latest launches, Renault registered 7,174 units of the Austral, making it the brand’s fourth best-selling vehicle.
Jeep, meanwhile, registered 4,290 units of the Avenger to become its best-seller in May, Alfa Romeo registered 3,240 units of the Tonale, accounting for 69 per cent of the brand’s total volume, and Peugeot registered 1,923 units of the 408.
Main image courtesy of Tesla, Inc
