Triumph and turbulence as major European markets close 2024 registrations
10 January 2025
While one of Europe’s biggest automotive markets had something to celebrate in 2024, others struggled with declines and turbulence. Autovista24 special content editor Phil Curry explores the final registration figures of the year.
The new-car markets of France and Italy returned to a less stable footing in 2024. Meanwhile, Spain was able to reach its growth goal. The latest figures from industry associations highlight what a tumultuous year it has been for Europe’s automotive industry.
The market has not had much time to find an even footing following the COVID-19 pandemic. The various lockdowns affected sales, and directly afterwards came the supply-chain crisis. This also skewed figures in 2023, with the restricted demand creating a sales boom.
Therefore, 2024 may have been the first year since 2019 with few market-limiting factors. But the emerging landscape appears very different to the one from five years ago. The industry will need to build on its experiences from the last 12 months to keep a steady footing.
French final
The French new-car market saw monthly registrations growth for the first time since April. Data from the PFA shows that 183,662 units were delivered in the month, an increase of 1.5%. Figures benefitted from an extra working day in December, compared to the previous year. When adjusted for working days, the market would have dropped 3.6%.
This positive result was not enough to lift the country’s full-year figures into growth. The French market ended 2024 with deliveries down by 3.2%, as just over 1.7 million passenger cars took to the roads.
Despite the country’s government collapse at the start of December, new plans for battery-electric vehicle (BEV) incentives were already ratified. The maximum amount dropped from €7,000 to €4,000 for households whose tax income does not exceed €16,300. For a taxable income between €16,300 and €26,200, the aid is now €3,000. Above this taxable income, it is reduced to €2,000, half what was offered on the previous subsidy scale.
However, models delivered by 14 February 2025 can still benefit from the more favourable conditions that were in force before 2 December, as long as they were ordered prior to the new incentive scale taking effect.
‘Purchase aid will be reduced in 2025 and the terms of social leasing, which remain to be specified with a view to a delayed launch towards the middle of the year, also look set to be more restrictive,’ commented Marie-Laure Nivot, head of automotive market analysis at AAA Data.
‘However, electrification should continue, thanks to solid demand for hybrids, but also to the expected success of several new electric models at more affordable prices such as the Citroën ë-C3, Dacia Spring and Renault 5.’
BEVs final falter
The change to BEV incentives may impact the powertrain’s figures between January and February. With one day between the publication of the bill and its ratification on 2 December, the effect should be minimal. Yet with BEVs ordered before that date receiving the previous amounts, the new scheme’s effect on December’s figures is limited.
France’s BEV market declined 20.7% in December, with 29,619 registrations, according to Autovista24 calculations. This was the third-steepest decline of the year and the fifth month in a row that the market shrunk. The powertrain took a 16.1% market share, dropping 4.5 percentage points (pp) compared to last year.
The result meant the full-year BEV registration figures ended in a decline. The market was left in a precarious position at the end of November, with figures just 0.1% up after 11 months.
So, in 2024, BEV registrations fell 2.6%, with 290,614 units taking to the roads. This was a difference of 7,605 deliveries, almost all accounted for by the gap between December’s figures. The powertrain accounted for 16.9% of all registrations in the year, up by 0.1pp compared to 2023.
While BEVs struggled, plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) improved by 44.9% in December. This equated to 24,717 units, a 13.5% market share. The performance did not help the full-year figures break out of a decline, with 146,392 units down by 10.2% across the 12 months. This meant an 8.5% market share, down 0.7pp on 2023.
Petrol’s pain
Once again, hybrids led France’s automotive market in the monthly figures. The country separates full hybrids (HEVs) and mild hybrids (MHEVs) into separate categories.
HEVs saw growth of 44% in December, with 40,464 units delivered to buyers. This was a 22% share of the overall market in the month, up by 4.5pp. Meanwhile, MHEVs saw 28,475 units registered, an improvement of 42.1% year on year. This equated to a 15.5% market share, up from 11.1% in December 2023.
Combined, hybrid deliveries dominated the market. The total hybrid sector made up 37.5% of registrations. Across the whole year, HEV registrations improved by 28.8%, with a 19.5% market share. Meanwhile, MHEVs saw growth of 47.4% with a 14.8% share.
Petrol’s struggles continued in December. Registrations declined 23% in the month, although the 43,683-unit tally was still the highest of any powertrains. However, the fuel’s 23.8% market share was the lowest of the year, as other technologies improved.
December’s result was the 10th consecutive month, and 11th of the year, to see a petrol decline. This means the fuel type ended 2024 with a total decline of 20.9% as 507,757 units took to the roads. This resulted in a 29.5% market share, a drop of 6.7pp compared to 2023.
Finally, diesel saw a 30.9% decline in December with 11,573 deliveries equating to 6.3% of the market. In the year, the powertrain’s deliveries fell by 27.2%, taking a market share of 7.3%.
Italy loses its way
The Italian new-car market dropped by 4.9% in December, as 105,786 units were delivered to customers, according to industry association ANFIA. This was the fifth-consecutive monthly decline in the country, and the seventh in total, marking a mixed year for Italy’s automotive industry.
December’s result also added to the country’s yearly decline. Italy first dipped into negative figures with a 0.2% drop in November. The country’s new-car market ended the month with a 0.5% fall across the 12 months, as just under 1.6 million passenger cars took to the roads, 7,922 units behind 2023’s total.
‘In addition to the weakness that persists in the market, we continue to be the only country with a huge gap between vehicles sold and those produced domestically,’ commented Roberto Vavassori, president of ANFIA
‘We expect a 2025 that will still be difficult and uncertain on both fronts, market and production, while the expectation for 2026 is to finally reduce this gap, between a market that we want to return to being robust and a production that will have to satisfy the demands of the market itself to a greater extent, with vehicles and components produced in Italy,’ he added.
BEVs finally fall
Italy’s BEV market was teetering on the brink of a full-year decline following November’s results. December’s performance meant the technology finished the year with a loss.
In the month, 5,807 BEV units were registered, a drop of 14.8% year on year. This was the third month in a row that all-electric models recorded a drop, with the technology securing just 5.5% of total registrations, down 0.6pp.
The result pushed the powertrain’s full-year figures into a decline of 1%. This was disappointing, given the technology had remained in cumulative growth until the last month of the year. BEVs took a 4.2% market share, remaining stable with 2023’s figures.
The fall comes despite a boom in June when incentive funding was released by the country’s government. Subsidy funding was depleted within hours, and the market struggled to attract buyers afterwards. However, without this funding, the BEV sector may have ended 2024 in a worse position.
PHEVs also endured a tough month, with 3,695 registrations, a decline of 16.7% compared to December 2023. This meant PHEVs took just 3.5% of the market in the month, down from 4% a year earlier.
The result further deepened the drop across 2024, with the technology ending the full year down 24.4% with a 3.3% market share, dropping 1.1pp.
Hybrids registrations high
Since 2022, hybrid models have been the most popular powertrain choice in Italy, a trend that continued in 2024. December saw the market, which includes both HEVs and MHEVs, grow by 9.5%, with 42,634 units delivered. This gave the technology a 40.3% market share in the month, up by 5.3pp.
In the full year, hybrid deliveries recorded a record total of 623,665 units. This was a 10.1% increase, giving the sector a dominant 40% share of all registrations.
Despite its declining popularity compared with hybrids, the petrol market managed to end the year with growth. December did little to bolster its full-year figures, as the market dropped 11.4%. The 30,021 units delivered to customers represented 28.4% of all registrations in the month, a drop of 2.1pp year on year.
This meant petrol’s end-of-year total was up by just 1.9%, with 456,052 passenger cars taking to the roads. The 29.2% market share was up on the 2023 full-year total, albeit by just 0.6pp. However, the performance meant that of the big five European markets, only Italy and Germany saw petrol registrations increase in 2024.
Diesel registrations fell by 17.1% in December, with 14,044 units delivered. This figure meant the powertrain still comfortably beat the combined BEV and PHEV figures. The 13.3% market share was down by 1.9pp year on year. The fuel type ended 2024 with a 21.3% loss compared to 2023, with the 13.8% market share dropping 3.7pp on the previous year’s figures.
Spain's registrations gains
While France and Italy had little to celebrate, Spain enjoyed success at the end of 2024. The country achieved its goal of over one million registrations in 2024, thanks to a strong end to the year.
For the first time, December was Spain’s best month for passenger-car registrations. A total of 105,346 units were delivered, an increase of 28.8%, according to data from ANFAC. This figure was helped by sales to both private and rental fleet buyers.
‘We ended 2024 surpassing the barrier of one million units. A figure that had not been reached since before the COVID-19 pandemic and that had limited our market in the last four years,’ stated Félix García, ANFAC's director of communications and marketing.
‘The good performance of sales in the last quarter, driven by the final sprint of purchases by companies and rental companies, has allowed us to close the year above one million. We continue the path to recover the sales volume of 1.2 million units that Spain must aspire to as the fourth EU economy.’
While December’s figure owed much to fleet renewal plans that were already in place, the recent flooding in the Valencia region also played a part. Many private owners and businesses lost their vehicles, meaning more new models were purchased in the region.
The performance in December meant that Spain’s 2024 total reached 1,016,885 units, a 7.1% improvement on 2023’s full-year figure. However, the industry is concerned that upcoming EU emissions regulation changes will impact 2025’s tally, especially if carmakers stop selling more popular internal-combustion engine models.
Domination of the hybrid
Hybrid powertrains, made up of HEVs and MHEVs, saw phenomenal growth in December. According to Autovista24 calculations, the powertrain improved by 61.8% in the month, with 45,183 registrations.
This meant the technology claimed a 42.9% market share in the month, making it the dominant powertrain in the month. The figure was up by 8.7pp compared to December 2023.
Petrol ended the year with a 16% monthly improvement, as 34,143 units were delivered to buyers. This result did mean a year-on-year dip in market share, as results elsewhere eroded the strong performance. The fuel type took 32.4% of total registrations, a drop of 3.6pp compared to December 2023.
Diesel’s struggle continued, with December’s registrations down 16.3% in the month. A total of 7,469 units were delivered, providing a market share of 7.1%. This was down year on year by 3.8pp.
Electric vehicle registrations stagnate
The Spanish BEV market improved by 49.5% in December, although this only equated to a total of 8,817 units. This was an 8.4% market share, up from the 7.2% recorded in December 2023.
The PHEV market, however, declined by 3.6% according to Autovista24 calculations. This meant just 236 fewer units were delivered in the month compared to December 2023. The 6% market share was 2pp down on the same point last year.
Across 2024, combined sales of BEVs and PHEVs totalled 115,932 units. This means the electric vehicle market ended the year up by 1.9%. Despite this increase, however, deliveries of EVs represented 15.2% of the market, down from the 12% recorded across the entirety of 2023.
