In 2024, 2,817,331 passenger cars were registered in Germany, of which 1,342,013 new vehicles were equipped with alternative drives. “Alternative drive“ refers to technologies that use energy sources other than traditional gasoline or diesel. These include electric vehicles (BEV), hybrid vehicles (HEV, PHEV), fuel cell vehicles (FCEV) and vehicles that run on liquefied natural gas (LPG) or compressed natural gas (CNG).
Cars in this segment reach a share of 47.6% of the total volume of new registrations. Such data was published by the German Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA).
Despite the growing popularity of such technologies, the total volume of new registrations of cars with alternative propulsion in 2024 turned out to be 2.7% lower than the previous year. A particularly significant decline was recorded in the electric vehicle segment, including BEV (Battery Electric Vehicles), plug-in hybrids and fuel cell vehicles. 572,672 new cars were registered in this sector, which represents 20.3% of the total, but this is a result that is 18.2% lower than a year earlier.
The largest decline was observed in the BEV segment - cars with an exclusively electric power source. In 2024, only 380,609 such cars were registered, which is 27.4% less than in 2023. Their share in the total number of registrations decreased to 13.5%.
Among the brands, Volkswagen remains the leader, registering 536,888 vehicles, of which 116,072 with alternative drive systems. Mercedes-Benz is in second place with 257,888 registered vehicles, of which 195,556 are in the alternative drive segment. Third place is taken by BMW with 232,886 vehicles, of which 165,930 are equipped with alternative drive systems.