Europe sells more electric cars. Combustion on the decline

The electric car market continues to grow in Europe , while combustion engine cars see sales decline . This is according to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA).

Electric cars rise more than 20%

According to that entity, in August registrations of 100 percent electric cars increased by 30.2 percent in the European Union and 26.8 percent in the EU/EFTA/United Kingdom area .

The market share of battery-electric cars was 15.8 percent (compared to 12.6 percent last year), which according to ACEA was " below the pace required at this stage of the transition ."

In the first eight months of the year, the increase was 24.8 percent in the EU with 1,132,603 units registered and 26 percent also considering the EFTA countries and the United Kingdom (1,536,433 cars).

Hybrids also grow

As for electric hybrids , in August they were sold by 14.1 percent in the EU and 11.7 percent in the EU/EFTA/UK combined, while plug-in hybrids increased by 54.5 percent in the EU and 56.3 percent considering both the EFTA area and the UK.

From January to August, 16.3 percent more hybrid electric vehicles were sold in the EU, representing a 15 percent increase across all countries. Plug-in hybrid sales increased by 27.2 percent in the EU and 28 percent in the EU/EFTA/UK combined.

According to ACEA, electric hybrids "continued to be the most popular power type among buyers."

Combustion engines lose ground

While electrified powertrains continue to grow, combustion engines are experiencing a decline in sales in Europe : in the EU, the drop in August was 16.3 percent for gasoline and 17.5 percent for diesel , while when also considering the EFTA countries and the United Kingdom, the drop was 17.3 percent and 17.5 percent, respectively.

In the first eight months of the year, sales of gasoline- powered cars in the EU have fallen by 19.7 percent and diesel- powered cars by 25.7 percent. Overall, the EU/EFTA/UK sales fell by 20.4 percent for gasoline and 25.2 percent for diesel.

The evolution of the European automotive market

Taking into account all types of engines, the European automotive market grew by 5.3 percent in August in the European Union and 4.7 percent in the EU/EFTA/United Kingdom area.

In the period from January to August, there was a 0.1 percent drop in new registrations in the EU , but a 0.4 percent increase in the EU/EFTA/United Kingdom area as a whole .