I’m feeling a bit dumb this morning, as a key piece of information was missing in my BMW-Tesla CC the other day. Not only has Tesla matched or beaten BMW overall in the US, but the Tesla Model S has been outselling the BMW 7 Series, Mercedes S Class, and Audi A8 in their home turf. And for the second year in a row.
Here’s the numbers for 2017: Sales of the Model S in Europe jumped 30 percent to 16,132 last year, according to JATO. Mercedes S class sales grew 3 percent to 13,359. BMW 7 series had sales of 11,735, down 13 percent.
And for 2018 through October: In the first 10 months, the Model S had sales of 13,209 in Europe, according to JATO Dynamics market researchers. The No. 2 seller was the S class with a volume of 12,688, followed by the BMW 7 series with sales of 8,221 and the Audi A8, which sold 4,854 units.
Some folks invariably will suggest that the Model S is not a direct competitor to these cars, but price-wise they do, mostly, with the Model S costing from 70,000 Euro ($80,000) to 145,000 Euro ($165,000) in Germany.
Tesla also sold 8,801 units of its Model X crossover in Europe through October, according to JATO data.
The Tesla Model 3 goes on sale in Europe starting in February. It will probably cannibalize sales of the Model S there, as many buyers are less concerned about the size and class of their Tesla. In fact the size of the Model S is seen as somewhat of a liability. Buyers primarily want a high-performance long-range EV. The Model 3 will start at 63,000 Euros ($72,000) in Germany, for the RWD long-range version. The Performance version will of course be more; estimated at 72,000 pounds ($92,000) by a UK dealer. That’s before any applicable incentives, which vary by country.
And of course there’s now some home-grown competition. It will be interesting to watch in 2019.
Mind blowing, despite sedans being segments in decline.
I’m not surprised. I saw a new 7 series in a parking lot recently and it instantly reminded me of a Cadillac model after the brand’s glory days. It could have had a Buick badge. Mercedes S class still has some presence left, and the interiors are still quite good, but they don’t have any of that overengineered bank vault quality whatsoever, they become albatrosses with longterm ownership in stark contrast to the old W126s.
My German friends detest BMW.
Hey now, some of us like our Buicks. 😉
I agree though. My wife wanted a BMW or MB and we just couldn’t see the value proposition.
It’s really not an insult on Buick mind you, it just represents the decline in prestige in high end luxury brands down to more upper-mid level luxury where a Buick had historically been. That brands descended to their level, doesn’t necessarily mean it’s an undesirable level.
Having said that I don’t like the state of modern Buick 😛
When I was in Amsterdam-Shipol airport earlier this year, only EV are allowed to pick up passengers.
The Model S is everywhere.
I still truly hope a redesign is in store soon.
Why fix what isn’t broken?
I think the grilleless facelift bought the Model S at least 10 years. They’re good looking and easily identifiable, which is a real feat in the modern carscape. Mercedes and BMW deviated in tried and true style to stay “fresh” and ultimately did them zero favors.
Well, their customer service better be a whole lot better than here in New Zealand. I know it’s different to the cars, but we bought a new Tesla Powerwall earlier this year, which lasted 30 minutes before something inside blew up (a rare but known fault), rendering it inoperable. Tesla’s customer service was appalling – they refused to return phone calls or emails. Everything’s finally sorted now. months later, but the whole experience soured us towards Tesla. If they treat car customers as poorly, they’ll find it hard to maintain strong sales…
If Mercedes is only selling 12,000 S class cars why even bother making them? Audi only sold 4,000 A8s? Why would you make them?
In Europe. There are also other parts of the world that they sell in, often in larger numbers.
Their largest market, by a huge margin, is China.
Europeans in my experience don’t go much for status symbols. Chinese do.
Ah, that makes a lot more sense now.
Those numbers are misleading, because Norway. More than 50% of all Teslas in Europe go to Norway because tax/insurance regulations in this country. The odd thing is that Norway is an oil-exporting country, they want you to buy their oil, but won’t touch that stuff.
Wrong. Tesla sold 2,686 Model S in Norway in 2017; that’s 17% of the Europe total. Through November of 2018, they sold 3,033 Model S in Norway; that’s 20%.
Source: https://insideevs.com/november-plug-in-cars-market-share-norway/
Please don’t spread misinformation. Thanks.
What’s your source for the qty info? I initially thought this as well but for the Model S, Norway’s deliveries in 2017 amounted to less than 4000, so under 25% of the European total for the Model S. A significant portion to be sure, but nowhere near half. I don’t have the breakdown for 2018 but doubt it’s anywhere near half either.
https://electrek.co/2017/12/19/tesla-breaks-new-records-norway-most-popular-automaker/
Regardless of the exact sales numbers in Norway, there is no doubt that Model S sales are much, much higher than comparable cars from the big German three in countries that don’t have a stake in the big three selling their cars there. And that is due to the way taxes are regulated. This makes a Model S comparable to an A6 in Norway and other European nations, so price is a major factor in these sales. In several European countries an S-class, A8 or 7-series is not an option within the Model S budget.
And I’m not saying you disagree with this take, Paul. Just elaborating.
I probably see 15 or 20 Model S for any one example of the other three combined here in Copenhagen. I can imagine that in Germany import taxes probably make the big three more favorable compared to a Model S.
Tesla is no less impressive for selling a product that governments are encouraging you to buy.
I was going to add a comment after your reply to my prognostications in the BMW piece, Paul, effectively saying that I may well end up being wrong about Tesla and Euro-chauvinism, because it was only after I’d commented that I realised the “good” Tesla S sales in Europe exceeded the big competitors COMBINED in the 2017 fig I had looked at.
There’s still a slight q-mark to me over the issue of subsidy/incentive when you consider the example, as above, of places like Norway: 1% of EU population and 20% or more of Tesla sales. When your S-class Merc is fully sparky, will the loyalty shift, especially if incentives die away as tax-cost limitations dictate they’ll have to? I don’t pretend to know the answer, I should add, but perhaps Tesla will too firmly hold the ground by then.
One thing is clear enough. Putting aside the amazingly speedy brand-equity establishment, posh Euro customers wouldn’t continue to stump up large money for the Tesla if the purchase itself was a dud in quality and usability.
Modern German luxury cars don’t have a super reputation for reliability.
And that too! “At last, a flash car that works.”
I would concur that the Model S has no direct competitors in Europe. I see people buying them who wouldn’t have ever considered an S-Class or 7-Series, because of what it might say about them. A recently deceased school-friend was hoping to have a Model 3 in 2019, having decided that the sheer size of the Model S would be an embarrassment.
Agree that 2019 Tesla results will be absolutely fascinating to watch, from the health of the business to the company’s ability to keep massively disrupting established competitors even as they start to fight back with EVs.
I think a key factor that plays into the results noted here is that the big German sedans have gotten quite stale. The new ones look similar to older ones and cheaper ones from the same brand. All are rolling robots and not particularly fun to drive. In other words, I think each of the traditional German top-line sedans have lost their aspirational quality. Which sooner or later becomes the kiss of death for a status symbol.
Oddly enough, the only German big sedan that I find remotely interesting now is the Porsche Panamera (not sure its sales numbers–assuming less than Audi). At least the car has character (love it or hate it) and is a different take on classic Porsche values–still a sports car, but in sedan form.
Tesla, by contrast, is seen as very fresh and revolutionary. Something a rich young person (or a rich young-at-heart person) would want to be seen driving. Sends all the right imagery and virtue signaling about being smart, cutting-edge and fashionable. That’s what status symbols are all about, right?
But the main point, I’d argue, is that the Model S is substantially cheaper than the cars it’s compared to above in many European countries. That goes for buying it, running it and owning it.
Its strange to see an American car getting so much praise from the press. While the praise is not universal – some see Tesla as fad while others point out its less than stellar reliability. Why does Tesla get a pass for quality issues, but not GM? Why is the Tesla Model 3 celebrated despite its problems and the Chevrolet Bolt ignored when it provides similar range for less money? Maybe the bias against American cars is not that they are American but they are from Detroit. I have heard the mid-west derisively called fly over country and other unflattering terms. Or maybe because Tesla is new and GM is old. People have long held a fascination with things new and shiny. Will Tesla still be as popular ten tears from now? Will the Model 3 be held in the same regard as a Toyota Camry, or a Chevy Vega?
https://www.consumerreports.org/cars-tesla-reliability-doesnt-match-its-high-performance/
Don, as you may know, Paul has written a series of GM Deadly Sins that, as a whole, IMO, make the anti-GM bias easier to understand even though those Sins are getting further and further in the rear-view mirror.
The General pissed away its mojo over a thirty-year span. Perceptions being what they are, it’s gonna take time – and understandably, a continuing slate of great products – to restore that mojo, if indeed it can ever be restored.
Please note, this is not to say GM will ever again regain the market share it once enjoyed. This IS to say that hopefully one day, people shopping popular segments offered by the General will give them a chance.
Tesla sales sure make it obvious why (besides the obvious “green” virtues) MB, Porsche and BMW (and Volvo) are hustling towards electric only brands. Getting a piece of that Tesla pie must be goal one for them.
Regardless of where in the US the Tesla is built, independent of its EV-ness, and putting aside incentives, the fact that a large American sedan is selling so well in Europe should warm the hearts of all Americans. I’m not a huge Tesla fan, even less a Musk fan, but as a business and product innovator, he’s doing something great. You have to go back to Henry Ford and the Model T to see something similar (with cars).
Hum, As Canucknucklehead points, the thing is that in Europe most cities are closing more and more areas to polluting cars. I know well the case of the Umwelt zones in Germany or the ban of older cars in Madrid or Barcelona in case of high pollution episodes. If you can afford it, the mid-term solution to keep on driving is having an electric car. Now, what car is prestigious while being electric? Tesla… They got it right and they will continue to grow unless BMW, VAG and MB come up with nice looking fully electric cars.
Arg, I clicked too fast
There is also the fact (also commented in this site) that Diesel is considered bad* and those 3 big premium companies relied on Diesel to keep low fuel consumption of their large and heavy cars.
* Part of the current Gillets Jaunes revolts in France are consequence of the raise of taxes on fuel to both reduce emissions and compensate tax cuts for the rich. Believe it or not, many French live in suburbs and depend on cars to move around. Non-raising salaries and high fuel costs damage families and the protests are more than justified.
(Of course there is much more, but this is quite a part of the story)