Are private buyers driving Germany’s new-car market forward? 

08 May 2026

With another month of new-car registrations growth in Germany, one force appears to be driving the market forward. But how are powertrains and brands performing in the country? Tom Hooker, Autovista24 journalist, explores the figures. 

Deliveries of new cars in Germany rose by 2.7% year on year in April, reaching 249,163 units. According to KBA data, private buyers helped drive this growth. Registrations in this sector climbed by 8.2% to 88,182 units.  

However, private buyers accounted for 35.4% of the market last month, compared to the commercial sector’s dominant 64.6% share. This meant that the latter’s 0.2% decline had a bigger impact on the overall market’s performance. 

Varying results were also seen across different passenger car segments in April. SUVs, the most popular body type, saw 13.5% increase in registrations. The compact class was the second-best-selling sector, despite a 12.9% decline. Then came small cars, which enjoyed a 12.1% improvement. 

Between January and April, the entire new-car market grew by 4.5% to 948,567 units. Germany has experienced only one monthly decline in 2026, and only two drops in the last 12 months. So, despite current headwinds affecting the new-car market, demand has remained resilient. 

Broken down, both the private and commercial sectors saw a 5.3% increase after the first four months of 2026. The former accounted for a third of the overall volume. 

Growing private BEV market 

Private demand has also increased in the battery-electric vehicle (BEV) market. This has been influenced by many factors, including a growing range of model choices for buyers. Rising fuel prices have also had a noticeable impact on demand, according to the ZDK. 

‘Private customers are now relying on BEVs to the same extent as fleet customers have done in the past. Drivers appreciate the increasing product range on the one hand, and the near cost parity in the entry-level segments on the other,’ explained VDIK president Imelda Labbé.  

‘Affordability is decisive for the acceptance of electric vehicles (EVs). This also applies to operating costs, where we see a cost advantage for EVs at present,’ she stated. 

Meanwhile, private buyers are still awaiting the activation of the country’s new EV incentives. The scheme was announced at the start of the year, with retroactive applications eligible back to 1 January. While users will be able to apply for support online, the portal will not open until May. 

Yet industry experts believe that the gap between the programme’s announcement and activation has not hindered demand. 

‘If we had normal market conditions, then the demand for EVs would probably not be as strong as it is currently. The fact that the purchase premium is not yet officially on the market does not even have a negative effect. Many customers plan for the bonus and expect to get this financing,’ said ZDK president Thomas Peckruhn. 

‘It is now crucial that the framework conditions develop reliably. Then, the market will continue to support the ramp-up under its own steam,’ he highlighted. 

Bigger slice for BEVs 

As more private buyers opt for BEVs, the technology’s slice of the new-car market continues to improve. It took a 25.8% share in April, up from 18.8% at the same time last year. With 64,350 deliveries, the powertrain saw a surge of 41.3% year on year. 

BEVs were the country’s second most popular powertrain in the month, 4.4 percentage points (pp) ahead of petrol in third. The technology was just 2.4pp behind the market share of hybrids, made up of full and mild versions. 

It also marked one of the largest shares for BEVs, alongside August 2023 and December 2022. However, these months were influenced by a pull-forward effect before subsidies were ended or reduced.  

With an increasing share, BEV performance is becoming more important to wider new-car market growth. Excluding the powertrain from last month’s figures results in a 6.3% year-on-year decline. 

BEVs recorded the same 41.3% year-on-year improvement between January and April, equating to 223,980 units. All-electric models made up 23.6% of total deliveries in the first four months of the year, up 6.1pp compared to the same period in 2025. 

PHEV market slowing? 

On the other hand, plug-in hybrid (PHEV) demand appeared to be slowing. Deliveries increased by 13.3% in April to 27,546 units. This followed a similar 13% year-on-year uptick in March.  

However, both improvements were lower than any monthly growth recorded in 2025. The technology is struggling when compared with its strong performances from last year. 

Yet as other powertrains see either smaller growth or overall decline, PHEVs’ market share continues to steadily increase. It grew by 1.1pp to 11.1% in April, while in the cumulative figures, it rose by 1.2pp to 10.9%. This was due to a 17.6% improvement in registrations to 103,660 units.  

Combining BEV and PHEV figures, EV deliveries increased by 31.6% in April to 91,896 units. This translated to a 36.9% share, up 8.1pp year on year. It also marked the grouping’s highest share since August 2023. Between January and April, the EV share reached 34.5% as volumes grew by 32.9% to 327,640 deliveries. 

Petrol market in peril 

As EV growth continued in April, so did the contrasting decline of internal-combustion engine (ICE) deliveries. The powertrain group, which includes petrol and diesel, saw a 17.8% year on year drop to 85,857 registrations. Its grip on the market consequently loosened from 43% to 34.5%, 2.4pp below EVs. 

Petrol had the poorer performance last month, suffering a 20% slump to 53,420 units. Its share fell from 27.5% to 21.4%. Meanwhile, diesel recorded a 13.8% delivery decline to 32,437 units and a 2.5pp drop in share to 13%. 

After four months of 2026, ICE volumes dropped by 14.1% to 341,226 registrations. The grouping captured 36% of the overall market, down 7.8pp year on year. While it remained ahead of EVs by 1.5pp, this could soon change if current performances continue. 

Broken down, petrol suffered the bigger decline of 17.2% between January and April, to 212,478 units. With its 22.4% share, the fuel type sat 6.8pp below hybrids. In comparison, the deficit stood at 0.3pp during the same period of 2025.  

Diesel endured a shallower 8.4% drop between January and April to 128,748 deliveries, as its share fell by 1.9pp to 13.6%. 

Hybrid’s stability stays dominant 

Between soaring EV sales and slumping ICE demand, hybrid volumes have remained comparatively stable in 2026. April saw a 4.2% increase to 70,207 units, giving it a 0.4pp rise in share to 28.2%. However, despite leading the market, this was its lowest hold of 2026 so far, as BEVs inched ever closer. 

Hybrid registrations rose by 6.6% in the first four months of the year, reaching 276,773 units. The technology represented 29.2% of overall volumes, up from 28.6%. 

Adding hybrids to the EV total, the electrified market continued to tighten its grip on new-car sales. The grouping made up 65.1% of deliveries in April, thanks to a 18.1% rise in volumes. In the year-to-date, electrified volumes increased by 19.4%, as the grouping accounted for 63.7% of the market total. 

Audi’s strong April 

Like powertrains, breaking down the new-car market by brands showed contrasting results within the top 10 best sellers.  

In fifth, Audi saw a strong year-on-year gain of 19%. Fellow Volkswagen (VW) Group brand Škoda posted a 12.2% improvement in fourth.  

Conversely, SEAT suffered a 13.9% slump in seventh, ahead of Hyundai, which recorded a 6.1% year on year gain. VW, Germany’s most popular brand, endured a 6.7% delivery decline. 

Ford recorded an 18.5% decline in ninth, followed by a 9.9% drop for Fiat, which rounded out the top 10. Elsewhere in the Stellantis stable, Opel posted a 6.6% delivery increase in sixth. 

Mercedes-Benz enjoyed a year-on-year improvement of 4.9% as it sat second, while new BMW volumes fell by 0.5% in third. 

Yet the fastest-growing brands in April all came from outside the top 10 best-sellers list. With 4,705 units, BYD posted a 200.4% year-on-year improvement to 4,705 registrations. This was bested by Tesla’s 255.8% surge, despite a lower delivery total of 3,149 units. Meanwhile, Leapmotor saw an even greater improvement of 331.5% to 1,355 deliveries.