Registrations: Electric cars in reverse gear

According to the German Federal Motor Transport Authority (Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt, KBA), the number of new car registrations in February 2024 was approximately 217,400 units, which is 5.4% higher than the same period last year. Increases were recorded for gasoline cars (plus 2.3%), diesel cars (plus 9.7%), and even plug-in hybrids (plus 22.3%). The number of newly registered cars with purely battery-electric drive (BEV) was 27,479, which is 15.4% lower than the result of the same month last year.

"The decline in the registration numbers of purely battery-electric cars shows the first effects of the consistently low order intake from last year," said ZDK Vice President Thomas Peckruhn, spokesperson for brand dealerships in Germany. "This year, the uncertainty among potential buyers due to the abrupt stop of the environmental bonus adds to this. This will particularly have a negative impact on the registrations of e-cars by private customers."

According to the KBA, approximately 431,000 new cars were registered in January and February, which is 11.8% more than in the same period of the previous year. The used car market showed significant improvement in February. With approximately 546,800 ownership transfers, the value was 19.8% higher than the same period last year. In the first two months of this year, around 1.074 million cars changed owners, which was 13.4% more than in the comparable period last year.