In 2024, Nio sales in the largest European automaker were down nearly 70%, BYD was down 30%, Great Wall Motor (GWM) was down 33%, and MG was up 20% compared to 2023.
In 2024, 2.8 million passenger cars were registered in Germany, down 1% from 2023. The registrations of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) were down 27.4% to 380,000 units. BEV registrations represented 13.5% of the market in Germany in 2024.
Plug-in hybrid (PHEV) registrations were up 9.2% to 191.905 units in 2024 compared to the year before. PHEVs represented a 6.8% market share.
The insurance registrations are published by the German Federal Motor Authority, which tracks new car plate registrations in the country.
In 2024, a total of 43,903 China EVs were sold in Germany, according to data monitored by China EV DataTracker.
SAIC’s MG secured the first spot by registering 20,977 vehicles in 2024, up 20.5% from 2023.
In December, MG registered 1,854 vehicles, up 93.7% from November but 28.1% down from the same month in the previous year.
State-owned SAIC was hit the hardest by EU import duties as it was a non-cooperative company. MG is subject to an additional 35.3% tariff to the EU on top of the existing 10% duty, making the total tariff rate 45.3%.
Geely-made Smart registered 12,463 vehicles in 2024, up 60.7% from 2023. In December, Smart registered 572 vehicles, down 25.5% from November and 67.6% lower than in December 2023.
Smart is a brand under Geely Holding that is co-engineered with Mercedes-Benz. According to the company, the Smart EVs are designed by Mercedes-Benz’s global design team, while Geely is responsible for the engineering and development of the new models. Smart cars are produced in China at Geely’s Xi’an plant, which started production in October 2021.
Another Geely Holding brand, Polestar, registered 3,181 vehicles in 2024, down 39.4% from 2023. In December, Polestar registered 328 vehicles, up 57.7% from November and 23.8% higher than in December 2023.
All Polestar EVs are China-made in Geely plants, mainly in Chengdu and Hangzhou.
Geely is subject to an additional 18.8% tariff, bringing the total import duty to 28.8%.
Great Wall Motor (GWM) and its EV brand Ora registered 3,002 vehicles in 2024, down 33.1% from 2023. In December, Great Wall Motor registered 439 vehicles, up 125.1% from November and 8.4% higher than in December 2023.
BYD registered 2,891 vehicles in 2024, down 30.2% from 2023. In December, BYD registered 323 vehicles, down 25.1% from November and 53.9% lower than in December 2023.
Nio registered 398 vehicles in 2024, down 68.5% from 1,263 units in 2023. In December, Nio registered 31 vehicles, up 6.9% from November but 20.5% lower than in December 2023.
Shanghai-based EV maker entered Germany in October 2022, along with three other EU countries (Sweden, Denmark, Netherlands). In the Netherlands, the company sold 20 cars in December and about 260 in 2024.
Nio also sells in Norway since 2021 – the company sold there 40 cars in December, and the 2024 total is 877 units.
Nio is subject to an additional 20.7% import tariff from the EU, and the total tariff is now 30.7%.
Lotus registered 365 vehicles in 2024, up 34.2% from 2023. In December, Lotus registered 41 vehicles, up 7.9% from November and 156.2% higher than in December 2023.
Volkswagen-backed Xpeng registered 362 vehicles in 2024. Xpeng entered the German market in March 2024, with deliveries starting from June.
In December, Xpeng registered 99 vehicles, up 22.2% from November.
In October 2024, the EU finalized its decision to impose definitive countervailing duties on battery electric vehicle (BEV) imports from China. The finalized duties were set as follows:
- BYD: 17.0%
- Geely: 18.8%
- SAIC: 37.6%
- Nio, Xpeng and other cooperative companies: 20.7%
These duties are in addition to the existing 10% tariff and are set to remain in force for five years until the end of October 2029.
