Favorite car of the Germans: still VW Golf, and soon Tesla Model 3? | Economy in Germany and the World: News and Analytics | DW

by time news

The gap was only 58 cars. In September, 6,886 new Volkswagen Golfs and 6,828 Tesla Model 3 electric vehicles were registered in Germany. German media outlets regarded these statistics from the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) as vivid evidence of the rapid changes in the German automotive market and a harbinger of a landmark change in the long-term sales leader.

The traditional sales leader in the German car market is losing ground

A brewing sensation is that the VW Golf was not just for years, but for decades the most sought-after and literally “people’s car” in Germany. This model, which first went on sale in 1974 and is now the eighth generation, even gave the name to a separate category of passenger cars: the term “golf class” began to denote cars of the “compact” or “lower middle class”.

Presentation of the 8th generation VW Golf in October 2019 at the Volkswagen headquarters in Wolfsburg

And now the electric car of the middle class Tesla Model 3 has actually caught up and in the coming months may overtake the traditional gasoline-diesel sales leader in the German market. A special symbolism of what is happening is that the Golfs are produced in Germany itself, and the American Teslas are still all imported: the new Tesla corporation plant in Grünheide near Berlin will start production only at the end of this or even at the beginning of next year.

Of course, we are talking only about monthly data so far. In the first three quarters of 2021, the VW Golf is well ahead of the Tesla 3 in the number of registered new cars bought or leased in the first three quarters of 2021, not to mention the number of cars of this model on the roads of Germany. And even more so in terms of total production volumes: for more than four decades, a total of over 35 million Golfs have been produced.

VW ID.3 and VW Up among the most requested electric vehicles

However, for assessing the prospects, it is not a glorious history that is important, but an actual trend, and it is obvious. According to KBA, VW Golf sales fell 41% last month compared to September 2020, while Tesla Model 3 sales grew 146%.

Electric car VW ID3

Will the VW ID3 become Germany’s “people’s electric car”?

So it is not surprising that the giant Volkswagen, which is competing with Toyota for the title of the largest automaker in the world, sees Tesla as a very serious competitor, and therefore, together with its subsidiaries, is actively increasing its counteroffensive in the all-electric vehicle market (Battery Electric Vehicle, BEV ).

So, in August in Germany, VW ID.3 was the sales leader among BEVs that managed to overtake Tesla Model 3. This “golf-class” electric car was officially launched at the end of 2019, but it actually went on sale in the fall of 2020. And in July, May, April and February of this year, the best-selling electric car on the German market was another Volkswagen – VW Up from the mini class.

Porsche Taycan crowds Mercedes S-class

World premiere of the Porsche Taycan electric car in September 2019

World premiere of the Porsche Taycan electric car in Germany in September 2019 against the backdrop of a solar power plant

Meanwhile, in the luxury class, Porsche, a Volkswagen subsidiary, is fighting for leadership. In September, she managed to achieve a very symbolic victory in her homeland, Germany. In the most expensive and prestigious segment of the automotive market, in which the Mercedes S-class model with internal combustion engines (ICE) has so far confidently led the way, the all-electric Porsche Taycan, which has been produced since the end of 2019, has become the best-selling car for the first time.

See also:

.

You may also like

Leave a Comment