Tesla’s market share doubled between 2019 and 2021, securing the company a place in the top 25 overall model rankings in Europe last year, beating established brands including Mazda and Mitsubishi.
JATO Dynamics’ latest figures show the American manufacturer sold 167,969 units in 2021, up from 29,300 units in 2018.
It beat Land Rover and Jeep, which are both leaders in the SUV market and came very close to overtaking Mini.
The company’s success was largely down to its Model 3. This was not only Europe’s best-selling EV but also featured inside the top 20 of the overall model rankings.
More units of the Model 3 were registered than the Peugeot 3008, Fiat Panda and Volkswagen Tiguan.
Across Europe, the 3 came top of the rankings in Switzerland and Norway, second in the UK and 10th in Germany and Austria.
The EV industry as a whole registered 2.25m units – a record 19% market share. While diesels took a 21.7% share, it is likely that they will be outsold by EVs this year, according to JATO Dynamics.
This was in spite of the global chip shortage crisis which severely impacted petrol and diesel markets.
Felipe Munoz, global analyst at JATO Dynamics, said: “For much of the year, it was easier to buy electric than petrol given the shorter lead times for these vehicles, and thanks to the generous incentives granted by governments.”
In fact, the chip shortage has been even more damaging to the industry than the lockdown restrictions of 2020. This meant that last year, total volume was at its lowest since 1985, with just 11.75m new cars registered across Europe.
“Crisis after crisis had a negative impact on demand and registrations in the market. The ongoing uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic, alongside the prolonged semiconductor shortage created a perfect storm for OEMs last year,” said Mr Munoz.