European Car Sales Rise 11% in March as Tesla and China Brands Surge

According to Gasgoo Auto, the European automotive market saw strong growth in March, with sales surging 11% year-over-year to 1,584,784 units. This growth was driven by record-breaking performance from Chinese brands, Tesla's strong rebound, and the concentrated launch of multiple new models.

According to the latest data from market analysis institutions, the overall market covering the EU, the UK, and the European Free Trade Association countries achieved a 4.1% year-on-year growth in the first quarter of 2026. This means that despite the many uncertainties facing the global economy, automotive consumer demand in Europe is showing a significant recovery.

The wave of electrification is unstoppable.，Chinese brands make a breakthrough

Electric vehicles continued to be the core driver of growth in the European market. In March, pure electric vehicle sales in the region increased by 42% year-on-year, while plug-in hybrid vehicles also saw a 33% rise. This shows that European consumers' acceptance of electric vehicles continues to grow, partly due to recent increases in gasoline prices across much of Europe—dealers reported in February that rising fuel costs were prompting more buyers to turn to electric options.

Image source: Chery

What attracted the most attention was the collective breakthrough of Chinese brands. In March, the new car registrations of Chinese brands reached 149,094 units, setting a sales record, with a market share of nearly 9.4%, approaching historical highs. BYD, Chery, and Leap became the biggest winners. Chery saw the highest sales growth among all automakers, with a monthly increase of nearly 29,000 units.

Chery's Omoda and Jaecoo also performed impressively, with Jaecoo posting an increase of over 12,000 units and Omoda gaining nearly 10,000 units. Additionally, Chery's namesake main brand, though newly entering the market, contributed 6,732 units in sales.

The Geely brand also performed impressively, with sales surging from 205 units in the same period last year to 2,283 units in March. This growth is attributed to Geely Group launching models in Europe that are more price-competitive than those from Volvo Cars, Polestar, and Zeekr.

Leap Motor (owned by Stellantis Group) sold 11,248 units in March, compared to just 1,309 units during the same period last year. This mainly owes to the significant expansion of its product lineup, as well as the strong sales of the T03 electric mini car driven by incentive policies.

Previously cutting the prices of Model 3 and Model Y, Tesla became the brand with the largest increase in the European and U.S. auto market this month. Its sales surged 89% in March to 52,842 units, an increase of nearly 25,000 units. The Model Y, a compact SUV, became the best-selling vehicle in the European market. Tesla's strong performance proves that a flexible pricing strategy remains an effective way to stimulate demand in the increasingly competitive European electric vehicle market.

Image source: Tesla

Overall, the strong performance of the European car market in March indicates that the conflict in the Middle East has not significantly affected consumer spending.

Traditional giants split: BMW leads, Stellantis catches up, Volkswagen remains stable

From a brand perspective, among the mainstream automakers outside the Chinese camp, BMW Group saw the highest sales increase in March, leading with a 16% year-on-year growth. Stellantis' sales increased by 7.1%, but the growth rate was slower than the overall market; the group's CEO, Antonio Filosa, is working to regain lost market share through pricing strategies, new models, and purchase incentives. Both the Volkswagen Group and the Hyundai-Kia Group saw a 5.5% increase in sales.

By contrast, some brands encountered difficulties: Nissan’s sales declined by 3.3%; although Mercedes-Benz and Renault posted growth of 1.6% and 2% respectively, both lost market share amid the overall robust European market.

Non-Chinese brands that outperformed the overall market include Citroen (up 30%), MINI (up 25%), and Fiat (up 23%).

Surprisingly, two high-end brands known for their sports performance, Alfa Romeo and Porsche, had a poor performance in March, with sales dropping by 18% and 17%, respectively. Among the mass-market brands, Ford (down 12%) and Peugeot (down 9.1%) saw significant declines, underperforming the market by about 20 percentage points.

And the former market winners, Dacia and Cupra, saw their March sales remain largely flat, with their market share also shrinking. However, Dacia showed signs of reversing the sales downturn in January and February, which executives had previously attributed to logistics and powertrain production issues.

Industry analyst Mathias Schmidt said that the first quarter sales in Western Europe, the main market for new car sales, reached the highest level since before the pandemic in 2019. Schmidt particularly emphasized that new models were at the core of this round of growth, with one in every nine new cars sold in the first quarter coming from newly launched models.

This data sends a clear signal: under the combined influence of accelerated electrification, the strong entry of Chinese brands, and the active adjustments of traditional giants, the European auto market is entering a new competitive era centered on product strength. The intensive release of new models is reshaping the market positions of all brands.