EU new car registrations edge up 1.4% in 2025 YTD

New car registrations in the European Union rose modestly by 1.4% in the first eleven months of 2025 compared with the same period last year, according to the latest data released by the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA). While the figures confirm a gradual recovery, overall volumes remain significantly below pre-pandemic levels, underscoring the fragile state of the European car market.

Electrified vehicles continued to reshape the market landscape. Battery-electric cars (BEVs) reached a 16.9% market share year-to-date (YTD) by November 2025, up from 13.4% a year earlier. The result is broadly in line with industry projections, though ACEA noted that faster growth will be needed to keep pace with the EU’s long-term decarbonisation goals.

Hybrid-electric vehicles remained the most popular choice among European buyers, accounting for 34.6% of all new registrations. Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) also strengthened their position, extending their upward momentum across key markets.

Between January and November 2025, 1,662,399 new battery-electric cars were registered across the EU. The bloc’s four largest BEV markets – Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and France – together representing 62% of all battery-electric registrations, all recorded solid gains. Germany led the way with a 41.3% increase, followed by Belgium (+10.2%), France (+9.1%) and the Netherlands (+8.8%).

Hybrid-electric registrations rose to 3,408,907 units over the same period, driven by robust demand in Spain (+26%), France (+24.2%), Germany (+8.7%) and Italy (+7.9%). Plug-in hybrid registrations climbed to 912,723 units, with particularly sharp growth in Spain (+113%), Italy (+80.6%) and Germany (+62.7%). PHEVs now account for 9.3% of the EU car market, up from 7.1% in 2024.

On a year-over-year basis, November 2025 saw especially strong momentum for electrified vehicles, with battery-electric registrations surging by 44.1%, plug-in hybrids rising by 38.4%, and hybrid-electric cars growing by 4.2%.

In contrast, registrations of petrol and diesel cars continued their downward trajectory. By the end of November 2025, petrol car registrations had fallen by 18.6% across the EU. France recorded the steepest decline (-32.1%), followed by Germany (-22.4%), Italy (-17.4%) and Spain (-14.6%).

Petrol cars accounted for 27% of the EU market YTD, down sharply from 33.7% a year earlier, with 2,665,739 units registered. Diesel registrations declined even more sharply, falling by 24.4% and leaving diesel vehicles with a market share of just 9%. In November alone, year-over-year figures showed petrol registrations down 21.9% and diesel down 23.2%.