Fully electric vehicle sales in EU overtake petrol for first time

Posted By: EN Todayon: January 27, 2026In: Electric Vehicles News

STORY: Fully electric car sales in December overtook petrol for the first time in the European Union.That was despite policymakers proposing to loosen emissions regulations.Tesla continued to lose market share though, particularly to competitors including China’s BYD and Europe’s best-selling group Volkswagen.That was according to data from the European auto lobby ACEA.Car sales throughout Europe sustained a sixth straight month of year-on-year growth.Overall registrations, a proxy for sales, hit their highest volumes in five years in 2025.Europe’s car industry faces challenges including competition from China, U.S. import tariffs and difficulties in meeting domestic regulations for EV adoption.The EU unveiled in December a plan to abandon an effective 2035 ban on combustion engine cars, bowing to calls from struggling carmakers.But analysts expect EVs to gain in popularity despite the policy relaxation.Sales in the EU, Britain and the European Free Trade Association rose by 7.6% to 1.2 million cars in December.They were up over 10% at VW and 4.5% at Stelantis.They fell 2.2% at Renault though. And registrations at Tesla were down over a fifth.Competitor BYD saw a 229% rise.