2:10 pm, October 24, 2019
THE European new car market enjoyed significant growth in September 2019, according to new figures just released – and an EV came within a whisker of the 10 best-selling vehicles for the first time.
Registrations of electric vehicles across Europe during the ninth month of the year increased by 119 per cent to 40,700 units, according to statistics released by JATO Dynamics, with models from Tesla, BMW and Volkswagen leading the way.
Tesla recorded 19,500 registrations and controlled almost half of the battery electric vehicle market, as it was boosted by the Model 3.
September was, in fact, a record month for the Model 3, which recorded 17,500 European registrations. In doing so, it became the best-selling electric vehicle and the eleventh best-selling vehicle overall.
It was the first time in history that an electric car has come so close to entering Europe’s top 10 model rankings.
Interestingly, the Model 3 has enjoyed top 10 success in the UK this year – it was the third most popular car in August, with 2,082 registrations, after what was likely to have been a huge delivery from America.
The overall increase in the European car market in September was to be expected given the large drop posted in the same month last year, when it was down by 23 per cent on the previous year due to the introduction of WLTP and the issues that came with it.
Felipe Munoz, JATO’s global analyst, said: ‘Despite the market’s new challenges, consumer demand continues to be strong in Europe. This is a good sign for the coming months, when looming CO2 targets become even more pressing for the industry.
‘Despite the negative views about the state of the industry, the data shows that we still have a healthy European car market – although there are many challenges heading its way, of course.’
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