German electric car sales topped by home-grown car companies in July
Reports out today suggest that Germany’s July electric car sales were about double last year’s and have grown to 0.61% of the German new car market. Four of the top five electric cars by sales in July were German, with the Audi A3 e-tron coming in first, the VW Golf GTE coming joint second, and the fully electric BMW i3 and Volkswagen e-Golf taking third and fourth position. Tying for second place with the Volkswagen Golf GTE was the fully electric Kia Soul EV.
It’s no surprise to see that German car companies continue to top the electric car sales table in Germany, but after test driving the Audi A3 e-tron myself, I have to admit that I’m surprised to see it and its almost identical cousin, the Volkswagen Golf GTE, topping the tables.

The July sales (i.e., registrations) numbers come from Jose Pontes, and as always, some estimates are included, so take the numbers as imperfect. According to Jose, Germany’s July electric car sales were about double last year’s and have grown to ~0.61% of the German new car market.

4 of the top 5 electric cars in July were German. Aside from the two plug-in hybrids noted at the top, the fully electric BMW i3 and Volkswagen e-Golf took #4 and #5. Tied at #2 with the Volkswagen Golf GTE was, surprisingly, the fully electric Kia Soul EV.

Overall, 100% electrics took slightly more of the market than plug-in hybrids, with 53% in July and 55% for January through July.

The Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV almost snuck into the top 5, with just 13 fewer registrations than the Volkswagen e-Golf. The Tesla Model S was close behind it at #7 and the Volkswagen e-Up! at #8 before things really trail off.

July numbers represented a significant shift from June. In June, the Tesla Model S was #1, the Golf GTE #2, the Outlander PHEV #3, the Kia Soul EV #4, the Audi A3 e-tron #5, the Nissan LEAF #6, the BMW i3 #7, the Renault Zoe #8, and the VW e-Golf #9.

Check out July’s charts and table for more on July numbers: