The once-dominant Tesla is now no longer even the top 10 best-selling EV brand in Europe this past April.
While it may come as little surprise, given Tesla’s steady decline in European sales since the start of the year, it is nevertheless a stark sign of shifting tides that Chinese rival BYD has, for the first time, overtaken the American EV maker in the region’s EV sales rankings.
According to a report by JATO Dynamics, BYD registered 7,231 battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) in Europe in April, edging out Tesla, which recorded just 7,165 units.
The contrast is all the more striking in context: Tesla’s April BEV sales fell sharply — down 49% compared to the same month last year — while BYD’s surged by 169%. The result saw Tesla slip to 11th place on the continent’s BEV sales chart, with BYD one spot ahead. Volkswagen Group continues to lead the chart overall.
Tesla’s aging model lineup and CEO Elon Musk’s increasingly controversial public image appear to be major factors behind the brand’s waning appeal in the Old Continent. Compounding the issue are recent factory stoppages to retool for the redesigned Model Y, which have disrupted production and deliveries in the first quarter.
The company had already reported its first annual delivery decline last year, and analysts now expect another drop for 2024, following a 13% year-on-year slump in Q1. Musk, however, claimed earlier this week that the sales dip has already been reversed — adding that demand remains strong, just not in Europe.
“This is a watershed moment for Europe’s car market,” said JATO Dynamics global analyst Felipe Munoz. “Especially when you consider that Tesla has led the European BEV market for years, while BYD only officially expanded beyond Norway and the Netherlands in late 2022.”
Zooming out to the broader EV market, demand in Europe remains healthy. BEV registrations in April rose 28% year-on-year, driven largely by the growing presence of Chinese manufacturers.
Despite the European Union’s imposition of tariffs on Chinese-made EVs, sales of these vehicles jumped 59% compared to the same month last year. By contrast, carmakers from Europe, Japan, South Korea, and the United States collectively posted 26% growth, underscoring the pace at which Chinese EV brands are gaining traction.
In Malaysia meanwhile, BYD’s all-electric lineup has broken into the top 10 in terms of total annual vehicle sales. with 8,570 EVs registered in 2024. And at last count with April’s sales data, the Chinese automaker still is clinching on to the country’s EV sales crown (by a hair).
Returning to the topic of tariffs, BYD is already taking steps to mitigate future trade barriers by establishing a production base in Hungary. Once operational in 2026, it will become the first major Chinese automaker to manufacture EVs within Europe, though almost certainly not the last.
Its product rollout in Europe in turn has continues with the recent launch of the Dolphin Surf, a compact all-electric five-seater city car known as the Seagull in its home market. Already BYD’s best-selling model in China, the Dolphin Surf is expected to make waves in Europe, especially when considering its starting price of just €19,990.
