EVs empower EU new-car market to first growth of 2025

28 May 2025

In April, registrations of new cars in the EU improved for the first time this year. Both battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) helped push the market forward. Tom Hooker, Autovista24 journalist, reviews how each powertrain performed.

The EU saw 925,359 new cars delivered to customers in April. This represented an increase of 1.3% year on year, giving the bloc its first month of growth in 2025.

According to ACEA data, out of the 27 EU member states, 16 recorded improvements, six of which were double-digit rises. From the remaining 11 nations that suffered a decline in registrations, four recorded a drop of more than 24%. However, three of these were low-volume markets.

The EU’s big four markets had contrasting fortunes, with France and Germany suffering respective declines of 5.6% and 0.2%. On the other hand, volumes in Italy improved by 2.7%, while Spain surged by 7.1%.

Comparing the combined delivery total of these four countries to their April 2024 figures results in a net loss of 1,547 units. So, where did last month’s EU growth come from?

Smaller markets prevent decline

Looking at the month’s five-digit markets, there were some notable registration declines. Belgium posted a drop of 4.8%, the Netherlands fell 4%, and volumes in Denmark decreased by 1.3%.

In contrast, deliveries in Austria surged by 16.5%, Sweden grew by 10.5%, Greece was up 9%, Czechia increased by 8.6%, Portugal improved by 8.2%, Poland rose by 5.8% and Hungary was up 3.6%.

Comparing these markets’ combined figures with their performance from one year ago equated to a gain of 9,888 units.

However, EU registrations were still down 1.2% in the year to date. A total of 3.64 million new cars were handed over to buyers in this period. This left a gap of 42,488 deliveries compared with last year.

The big four contributed to most of the difference, with a net 36,112-unit loss. This was largely caused by a 7.3% fall in French registrations, while Germany and Italy suffered declines of 3.3% and 0.6% respectively. However, Spain prevented an even worse drop, improving volumes by 12.2% from January to April.

BEVs best in EU market

BEVs were the best-performing powertrain in April. The technology saw registrations soar 34.1% compared to 12 months ago, reaching 145,341 units.

This was an increase of 36,919 deliveries year on year. It also marked BEV’s biggest percentage gain since October 2023. Removing the powertrain from the EU’s new-car market would have resulted in a 3.1% decline.

The technology took a 15.7% market share, up 3.8 percentage points (pp) year on year. This was its highest share recorded so far this year.

The three largest all-electric markets in April were Germany, France and Belgium. They saw volumes improve by 53.5%, 35.8% and 2.8% respectively.

Meanwhile, Italy recorded the second-highest BEV growth out of all member states, surging 108.2%, as registrations in Spain grew 78%. However, while members of the big four overall, both these markets regularly see smaller monthly BEV volumes.

Both countries’ all-electric totals still trailed Denmark, Sweden and the Netherlands. These member states achieved increases of 45.5%, 25.8% and 1.8% respectively. Overall, only five EU nations suffered a BEV decline, albeit with smaller totals of the powertrain.

The technology grew by 26.4% in the first four months of the year, thanks to 558,262 registrations. BEVs captured 15.3% of the new car market from January to April, up from 12%.

Four countries saw all-electric volumes fall, three of which were the low-volume markets of Estonia, Malta and Romania. However, the fourth was the second-biggest BEV market of France, declining 4.4% in the year to date.

Meanwhile, the powertrain’s largest market, Germany, surged 42.8% in the four-month period. In smaller-volume BEV regions, the best result came from Italy, with deliveries rising 79.4%.

This was followed by Spain with a 71.2% increase, then Denmark up 56.8%, Austria up 41.6%, Belgium up 31.3%, Portugal up 29.8%, Ireland up 25.4%, Sweden up 16.6% and the Netherlands up 6.4%.

EU phenomenal PHEV performance

PHEVs also enjoyed a strong result in April, with 81,554 registrations equating to a year-on-year growth of 31.2%. This was the biggest monthly percentage increase since ACEA began monthly reporting of individual powertrain figures in January 2023.

PHEVs accounted for 8.8% of new-car registrations in April, up by 2pp and marking its highest share so far in 2025.

With a gain of 60.7% and 9,182 units compared to April 2024, Germany boosted the technology’s total and comfortably remained its biggest market. Spain and Italy also saw significant growth of 80.3% and 77% respectively, making them the third and fourth most popular PHEV states. In contrast, France endured an 11.7% decline.

Other notable increases came from Poland and Austria, which improved volumes by 115.9% and 87.6% respectively. Elsewhere, deliveries in the Netherlands rose by 41.4%, Ireland grew by 23%, Portugal increased by 20.4%, and Sweden improved by 19.3%. However, Belgium saw PHEVs drop by 48.5% last month, with Cyprus, Denmark and Malta the only other markets to suffer declines.

Spain overtakes France

The powertrain enjoyed a 7.8% rise in deliveries across the first four months of the year, posting 287,850 units. PHEVs made up 7.9% of the overall delivery total, up from 7.2%. The two leading PHEV markets experienced growth, with Germany surging 46.6% and Spain up 42.8%.

The latter was narrowly ahead of France across the first four months of the year. France was comfortably the second-biggest PHEV market in 2024, but saw registrations slump by 41% in the year to date. Belgium’s share of the market also slipped, with volumes decreasing by 61.6%.

The other notable markets to record growth were led by Ireland with a 55% improvement. This was followed by Austria’s 43.1% increase, while Italy was up 41.8%, the Netherlands grew by 18.4% and Sweden rose by 14.3%.

Combining BEV and PHEV volumes, the electric vehicle (EV) market grew by 33% year on year in April, with 226,895 registrations. This equated to a gain of 56,301 units. Without plug-ins, the new-car market would have declined by 6% last month.

The powertrain grouping took a 24.5% share, an improvement of 5.8pp compared to April 2024. This also marked its highest share so far this year. From January to April, EV deliveries have increased by 19.4%, reaching 846,112 units. Plug-ins captured 23.2% of EU volumes, up from 19.2%.

Hybrids lead the EU

Hybrids continued to comfortably lead the EU’s new-car market. With figures made up of mild hybrids and full hybrids, the technology saw volumes rise by 20.8% in April. In total, 320,725 units were delivered to customers.

This gave it a 34.7% share, up 5.6pp year on year. However, due to the strong performance of EVs, this was its lowest monthly share so far in 2025.

France saw the biggest increase out of the five-digit hybrid markets, improving on its April 2024 figure by 37.7%. Spain also enjoyed a significant increase of 33.6%. Italy saw volumes of the powertrain rise by 14.2%. April’s highest-volume hybrid country, Germany, managed a 12.2% growth compared to one year prior.

Six markets faced a drop in the technology last month, most notably in the Netherlands where volumes slumped 10.4%.

Italy narrowly beats Germany

Across the first four months of the year, hybrid deliveries rose by 20.8%, posting 1.28 million units. This was a gain of 220,952 registrations compared to the same period in 2024. The powertrain represented 35.3% of total registrations, up from 28.9%.

Hybrid registrations declined in seven member states from January to April. However, six of these were low-volume markets, with the other drop coming from the Netherlands, which fell by 9.2%.

Italy was the highest-volume hybrid market in the year to date, with registrations growing by 15%. It beat Germany’s total by just 259 units, as the country saw volumes of technology improve by 11%. France also enjoyed a 44.9% improvement, while Spain was up by 35.8% year on year.

Adding hybrids to the EV total, the electrified market grew by 25.6% in April, with 547,620 units. This equated to a gain of 111,535 registrations year on year. The powertrain grouping took a 59.2% share of new-car deliveries, up 11.5pp from April 2024.

During the first four months of 2025, electrified volumes soared 20.2%, thanks to 2.13 million units. The sector captured 58.6% of the market in this period, up from 48.2%.

Petrol’s sharp EU drop

Petrol-powered cars endured a 20.6% decline last month, with 261,709 units. This equated to a 28.3% market share, down 7.8pp year on year.

Six countries achieved growth, while the rest recorded sharp drops, such as Germany, which saw deliveries decline by 26.4%. Italy posted a less severe slump of 9.8%, while petrol-powered volumes in Spain fell 20.4%. France also struggled, with last month’s figure of 38.8% down on its total from 12 months previously.

From January to April, petrol-powered registrations declined by 20.6%, with 1.04 million units. This gave it a 28.6% market share, down from 35.6%. The EU’s big four all suffered slumps in this period. France was the worst affected, dropping 35.2%. Germany saw its petrol market decrease by 26.6%, while Italy declined by 14.4% and Spain was down by 12.7%.

Deliveries of diesel-powered cars dropped by 24.4% last month, with 88,974 units. However, this translated to a 9.6% market share, an improvement of 3.3pp compared to 12 months prior.

Diesel’s biggest market, Germany, saw registrations fall by 18.7%. Meanwhile, the only other five-digit country for the fuel type, Italy, slumped by 26.3%. Overall, just five countries posted growth, although these were all lower-volume markets.

In the year to date, registrations of diesel-powered cars dropped 26.4% to 348,050 units. The powertrain accounted for 9.6% of overall volumes across the first four months of the year, down from 12.8%.

Adding together petrol and diesel volumes, the internal-combustion engine (ICE) market endured a 21.6% slump in April, with 350,683 units. The powertrain grouping accounted for 37.9% of the market, down by 11pp year on year.

A total of just under 1.39 million ICE models were registered in the year to date, falling 22.1% compared to the same period in 2024. This gave it a 38.2% market share, down from 48.4%.