Volkswagen said its battery-electric vehicle (BEV) sales have more than doubled in Europe in Q1 2025, boosted by rising demand and new EU emissions targets, while orders for both electric and combustion vehicles rose 29 percent in Western Europe.
In contrast, BEV sales in China dropped over 35 percent, contributing to a 7.1 percent overall sales decline in the country amid stiff competition from domestic EV-only brands.
The company expects improvement in BEV sales with upcoming launches of updated ID.3 and ID.4X models and new Audi and VW EVs showcased at the Shanghai Auto Show.
In Germany, Volkswagen dominated with seven of the top ten bestselling models, as Tesla’s Model Y dropped from first to seventh due to nearly 70 percent lower sales and waning brand momentum. U.S. sales rose 6.2 percent, possibly due to pre-tariff buying, but exposure to tariffs on imports from Mexico and Europe affected performance, Reuters news report said.
VW’s operating profit fell sharply to €2.8 billion from €4.6 billion a year ago, due to diesel-related provisions, carbon regulation costs, U.S. tariff uncertainty, and restructuring expenses. Total sales of VW grew 3 percent to €78 billion, and the company maintained its full-year outlook, excluding the unknown impact of tariffs.
Growth in North America (+4 percent), South America (+17 percent), Western Europe (+3 percent), and Central and Eastern Europe (+8 percent) offset the expected decline in China (-7 percent).
Global BEV share rose significantly in Q1 from 6 percent to 10 percent, driven by strong growth in Europe (+113 percent) and the USA (+51 percent), while China saw a decline (-37 percent); Volkswagen Group remained the BEV market leader in Europe with around 26 percent market share.
New models across all drive types, including VW ID.7 Tourer, CUPRA Terramar, Skoda Elroq, Audi Q6 e-tron, and Porsche 911, saw strong demand; Western Europe’s order book grew to about 980,000 vehicles in Q1, with BEV orders increasing by 64 percent.
Europe deliveries rose by 3.7 percent to 939,800 vehicles, with Western Europe up 3.0 percent and Central and Eastern Europe up 7.9 percent; Germany grew by 5.5 percent.
North America deliveries increased by 4.4 percent to 237,200 vehicles, with a 6.2 percent rise in the U.S. market.
South America saw the highest regional growth at 16.6 percent, reaching 138,200 vehicles; Brazil contributed with 3.3 percent growth.
Asia-Pacific deliveries fell by 5.8 percent to 720,400 vehicles due to high competition in China, where deliveries declined by 7.1 percent.
Baburajan Kizhakedath