Consumer demand for new passenger cars in the European Union remains robust with a 5.7% rise in vehicle registrations year to date ending September 2026.
Data from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association reveals the sales growth comes “despite a challenging macroeconomic environment marked by persistently rising energy prices and geopolitical headwinds,” its Oct. 22 release stated.
At the same time, figures show continued strong demand for the available range of electrified vehicles. Because, while hybrid vehicles remain the most popular powertrain choice among buyers accounting for 36.3% of all new registrations between January and September 2026, electric vehicle registrations now make up 22.7% of the market share, up from 16.1% for the same period last year.
In the first nine months of 2026, 1,931,465 new passenger EVs were registered, with three of the four largest EU markets — France, Germany and Denmark — together accounting for 64% of all registrations.
September 2026 YTD figures showed hybrid car registrations rising to 3,090,530 units, supported by growth in Italy, up 20.8%, and Spain, rising 20.5%.
Plug-in-hybrid car registrations also continued to grow, reaching 860,257 units in January through September.
At the same time, by the end of September 2026, gasoline car registrations continue to decline, falling by 19.1%, with France witnessing the sharpest decline, plunging by 36.1%.
Gasoline new car registrations fell to 1,802,078 units over the past nine months, with market share dropping to 21.2% from 27.7% for the same period in 2025.
The diesel car market, too, continued its downward trend, with registrations falling by 19.5% and representing 7.1% of new EU car registrations, down from 9.3%.
