BYD has overtaken Tesla as the European leader for sales of fully electric cars in a market first.

BYD registered 7,231 BEVs in Europe last month, beating Tesla’s 7,165 units, according to latest Jato Dynamics data.

Jato said the difference between the two brands’ monthly sales totals may be small, but the implications are enormous.

“This is a watershed moment for Europe’s car market, particularly when you consider that Tesla has led the European BEV market for years, while BYD only officially began operations beyond Norway and the Netherlands in late 2022,” said Felipe Munoz, global analyst at the automotive data firm.

Tesla’s sales have been harmed by controversy over CEO Elon Musk’s involvement in politics plus increasing competition, despite the arrival of the facelifted Model Y. The latest monthly drop brings total volumes down 49% year on year.

In contrast, BYD saw an increase of 359% over the same period thanks to its broad and competitive line-up of fully electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids. BYD’s rapid expansion has already pushed it ahead of established European car brands – outselling Fiat, Dacia, and SEAT in the UK; Fiat and SEAT in France; SEAT in Italy and Fiat in Spain.

BYD’s efforts to expand in Europe are also gathering pace with a commitment to open its European headquarters and a new European R&D centre and plant in Hungary.

Jato’s data also reveals that BEVs and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) combined accounted for 26% of new car registrations in Europe, a new record, with Chinese car brands behind much of this growth. BEVs accounted for 17% of this total, up from 13.4% in April 2024, while plug-in hybrids represented 9% of monthly registrations, up from 6.9% in the corresponding month last year.

Chinese carmakers continue to make inroads on the European market despite the tariffs imposed by the EU on BEVs earlier this year. Many Chinese carmakers selling cars in Europe have responded by expanding and diversifying their European line-up with the introduction of plug-in hybrids, which have not yet been targeted by EU tariffs.

Despite the imposition of tariffs by the EU, registrations of electric cars made by Chinese automakers in April rose by 59% year on year, reaching almost 15,300 units. Within this segment, carmakers from Europe, Japan, Korea and the US recorded an increase of 26%.

The PHEV segment also saw a notable development as volumes from Chinese players increased by 546% year on year, from 1,493 units in April 2024 to 9,649 units in April 2025, meaning Chinese car brands now account for almost 10% of the total number of PHEVs registered in Europe.

“It remains to be seen whether the EU will respond to the boom in Chinese-made PHEVs by imposing tariffs on these vehicles too,” Munoz commented.

Elsewhere, the Jato data reveals a stable market for new car registrations in Europe, with  1,078,521 units registered in April, 1,399 more units than the same month in 2024.

Year-to-date registrations, covering the period between January and April 2025, totalled 4,467,681 units, or just 6,560 more than during the same period of 2024.

The Renaut Clio was Europe’s most registered car in April, with 19,000 units. The French supermini has not led the model rankings since June 2020, having lost ground in recent years to its low-cost rival, the Dacia Sandero – Europe’s best-seller in 2024.

The standout performer of the month was the Volkswagen Tiguan, in fourth position, with registrations soaring 32% to 16,300 units. Other strong performers include the Toyota Yaris Cross, Dacia Duster, Opel/Vauxhall Corsa, Peugeot 3008, Jeep Avenger and Mini Cooper.

The Škoda Elroq led the BEV model rankings for the first time, with 8,000 units, some eight months after it debuted and ahead of the arrival of the vRS performance version with 340hp and 340 miles (550km) of WLTP range.