European Consumers Can Now Order Electric Vehicles Directly from China

According to foreign media reports, the Chinese e-commerce platform "China EV Marketplace" now allows European consumers to directly purchase pure electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles that meet local road standards from China, and offers home delivery services, including customs clearance.

Image source: China Electric Vehicle Mall

"China Electric Vehicle Mall" is reportedly the world's largest online sales platform for Chinese electric vehicles, serving users globally. In the first half of this year, the platform sold 7,000 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 66%. However, according to CarNewsChina, this growth was primarily driven by plug-in hybrid vehicles — a type of model that is exempt from special tariffs when exported to the EU.

Additionally, the automotive industry analysis agency Jato Dynamics reported that Chinese automakers doubled their market share in Europe in May, with a sales increase of 111%. Jato Dynamics noted in the report: "In May this year, the registrations of Chinese automakers reached 65,808 units, accounting for 5.9% of the total car sales in the European region. This means that the market share of Chinese car brands has more than doubled compared to 2.9% in the same period last year."

Jakub Gersl, Chief Operating Officer of the "China EV Mall," stated: "For the first time, electric vehicle enthusiasts across Europe can now order brand new Chinese pure electric models or plug-in hybrid models directly from China and enjoy home delivery services. Our new service eliminates the complex procedures and tricky issues in the traditional international car import process."

Previously, consumers had to handle customs clearance procedures on their own and go to the port to pick up their cars. Now, the platform takes care of these steps and delivers the car directly to the consumer's doorstep. The minimum order quantity on the "China Electric Vehicle Mall" is 1 vehicle, so the platform is open not only to importers but also to individual consumers.

The vehicle models cover multiple brands including Xiaomi and Volkswagen.

Among the models sold on the "China EV Mall" platform, in addition to car brands that have already established operations in Europe—such as BYD, XPeng, NIO, and Leapmotor—it also offers vehicles from manufacturers that have not yet set up a local distribution network in Europe, including Wuling, Baojun, Avatr, and Xiaomi's electric cars. In addition, consumers can also purchase Volkswagen and Tesla models through the platform.

On this platform, the net price of the BYD Seagull is $10,200, while BYD sells this model under the name "Dolphin Surf" in Europe for €22,990 (approximately $26,650). The Leapmotor C10 electric vehicle is priced at $17,030 on this platform, with a gross price of about €17,500, whereas purchasing this model through regular European distribution channels costs over €36,000. The XPeng Mona M03 has a net starting price of $16,700 on this platform (gross price approximately €17,100), and the Xiaomi SU7 starts at $31,250 on this platform.

In addition, users can also order the Chinese-made Volkswagen ID.3 through the platform, with a net price of $23,270, and a VAT-inclusive price below 24,000 euros. Chinese-made models built on the Volkswagen MEB platform, such as the Volkswagen ID.4X, ID.4 Crozz, ID.6X, and ID.6 Crozz, are also included in the platform's sales list.

Potential disadvantages to note

However, there are some disadvantages to consider when purchasing a car through this platform: all vehicles are manufactured according to Chinese standards, for example, all electric vehicles are equipped with the Chinese national standard (GB/T) charging port, rather than the CCS port commonly used in Europe. Although the platform provides a free adapter to enable charging at CCS charging stations, this may affect charging efficiency. In addition, it may be difficult to obtain spare parts, and there is no guarantee that the vehicle’s operating system language can be switched to other languages. If the vehicle system or related applications can only communicate with Chinese servers, this may further restrict usage.

In addition to the listed price, if you choose to have the “China Electric Vehicle Mall” handle customs clearance, an additional net fee of USD 400 is required; if the vehicle needs EU certification, an extra net fee of USD 1,500 must be paid. In theory, consumers can handle these two procedures themselves, but the process is time-consuming and labor-intensive. Both customs clearance and EU certification are necessary steps for vehicle import and registration. Additionally, consumers may need to pay separate special import duties. Shipping costs will also be charged separately depending on the condition of the vehicle. After taking all these factors into account, the price advantage of importing vehicles from China compared to regular European prices may be significantly reduced, or even disappear entirely.

For individual consumers, whether to purchase such electric vehicles through this platform depends on their own assessment of its appeal. However, at the industry level, the platform will significantly reduce the difficulty for companies to purchase competing models for comparative research. Since vehicles used for research purposes are typically subjected to various tests and may even be dismantled, the lack of after-sales service is relatively less significant in this context.

"China Electric Vehicle Mall" had previously entered the U.S. market, but will soon cease its operations in the United States. According to reports, due to the impact of tariffs, the platform's sales in the U.S. have dropped sharply. So far, it has sold only about 30 vehicles to industry clients in the U.S., all of which have been used for competitor comparison studies.