Chinese EVs that win great across Europe but Germany resists

Chinese electric vehicles are barnstorm throughout Europe, but Germany, the largest market for Epirus, proves a tougher nut to break.

German consumers are more difficult to thank and demand higher speeds over long distances that the ECs cannot handle. And in the country where Porsche, BMW, Mercedes and Audi have their home, they are reluctant to admit that anyone else can fit these purebreds.

“Chinese manufacturers really fight in Germany, representing less than 2% of the new car market, which is less than half of the peripheral average just over 5%” Schmidt Automotive Research Founder Matt Schmidt said.

“A Chinese invasion here seems to be the least likely of all European markets,” Schmidt said in an email exchange.

German drivers have a taste for speed and some of their Autobahns have no limits yet. The EKs are very poor on prolonged cruise at high speeds. Even maintaining most of Europe’s 130 km/h (81 mph) (81 miles/h) defined speed with the best high -speed performance, such as the 240 miles of Tesla Model 3, would be less than half of the cheap diesel spectrum.

The awareness of the brand is strong in Germany. It would take a supersalesman to convince someone who is thinking of buying a Porsche, BMW, Mercedes or Audi to consider a Nio, Xpeng, Zeekr or Yangwang or Denza of BYD.

However, sales of Chinese trademarks in general, and in particular the UN, were strong throughout Europe in the first half of 2025 in a total market that slipped a bit. European sales of sedans and SUVs decreased by 4.4% in June to 1.3 million. Chinese sales published a record market share in June, which exceeded 5%.

“The market share of Chinese car signals in the first half of 2025 almost doubled since the same period last year in a new 5.1%record,” he said Jato dynamics to a report.

Byd, Jaecoo, Omoda, Leapmotor and Xpeng Lead

“The five automakers are driving this rapid growth: Byd, Jaecoo, Omoda, Leapmotor and Xpeng. Byd, which was particularly aggressive in the top pricing strategy, explained 70,500 sales at H1 2025-an annual increase of 311%.

In Germany, EV sales proceeded 35% to just 250,000 in the first half, compared to the same period last year. Volkswagen and its brands such as Skoda, Audi and Cupra, led by VW ID.7, provided eight of the top 10 models. The only exceptions were the Tesla Y and BMW IX1 model. No one was Chinese.

Mercedes, Fords, Hyundais and Toyotas were at the top of 10. No one was Chinese. Byd has made great progress in other European markets. MG, owned by Saic Motor Corp Ltd, sells well in the UK

According to Dr. Michael Putz, Management Partner at Automated Counseling, Chinese EV manufacturers have great ambitions for Germany, despite initial difficulties. A 10% market share is a reliable target.

“Recording 20% of the German market is possible for Chinese manufacturers, but it will be a piece of stretching. In the last 15+ years, the share of non -European car brands in Germany was stable at about 20%. Putz said in an email exchange.

“I think, however, that they will be more than happy with about 10%, which I think is a realistic target, the 10% market share corresponds to an annual revenue potential of about $ 18 billion,” Putz said.

EVs fail on high -distance high -speed cruise

The taste of German for high speeds must be addressed, Putz said.

“Most Chinese HEs are not done for prolonged high speeds and they will have to work in essence, such as battery thermal management to make sure their cars are suitable for Autobahn, they must also communicate this well, so that customers realize what their cars are,” he said.

“One thing can help them is the fact that not many European EKs are made for racing speeds either. EV users are used to the fact that driving quickly on the highways is not an option if they want to go away in a charge due to its natural resistance in the air. This is an obstacle to adopting EV in general, not limited to Chinese brands, “Putz said.

This high speed inability in EVS is the truth that dare not speak its name among electric car enthusiasts.

Based on London GeographicsWhich describes himself as a world leader in the connected vehicle solutions, he raised the question “Summer Heat in terms of speed: What really affects the EV area?”

Geotab said that aerodynamic drag has a much greater effect on range.

“Data shows that even moderate speed increases lead to sharp range losses, for example, a 65 kWh electric truck traveling at 50 mph at 30 ° C heat with air conditioning has a standard range of about 143 miles. MP.”

German success key in Europe

“The pattern is similar to electric sedans, although it is slightly more aerodynamically, at 50 miles / h at 30 ° C, you can expect 277 miles to 60 mph: 251 miles in 70 mph: 226 miles and 80 mph: 200 miles – 28% fall from the most effective cruise speed,” according to GEOTAB.

Schmidt points out that the difficulties for the Chinese in Germany are excessive because this huge market is the key to success in Europe.

“Given German consumer preferences for the patriotic market, the dominance of German premium manufacturers in Germany and the domination of the fleet market, which requires high levels of fixed residual prices to operate business funding models, leads to a Chinese invasion here.”

“The problem for the Chinese is because Germany is the market for higher volume and is the key to building European scaling advantages and will play an important role in justifying a local European production facility,” Schmidt said.