Overview

• Ola Källenius (ACEA) and Matthias Zink (CLEPA) urged Ursula von der Leyen to rethink the 2030 CO₂ cuts and the 2035 combustion‑engine sales ban, advocating room for hybrids, range extenders, hydrogen and e‑fuels ahead of a 12 September strategic dialog.
• ACEA reported EU new‑car registrations up 7.4% in July to 914,680, yet year‑to‑date sales are still down 0.7% at about 6.49 million, with hybrids at 34.7% market share and BEVs steady at 15.6% as petrol and diesel combined fall to 37.7%.
• Chinese brands outpaced Tesla in EU EV registrations in July, with BYD at 9,698 and Tesla dropping to roughly 6,600 and even trailing SAIC, while Tesla’s EU sales for January–July declined 43.5% to 77,446.
• Policy design is shaping the mix: EU tariffs target China‑built BEVs but not PHEVs, encouraging plug‑in hybrid imports, even as a stricter PHEV utility factor from 2026 is set to raise their effective CO₂ values.
• Regional data point to localized momentum, with Saxony logging 6,677 BEV registrations in January–July, about 2,500 more than a year earlier, after a 2024 slump following subsidy cuts.