Tesla, Alfa Romeo, MG sales boom as German market leaps 19% in May

FRANKFURT -- German new-vehicle registrations rose 19 percent in May, helped by strong demand for electric cars.

Registrations of new passenger cars were 246,966 last month, according to data from the KBA motor transport authority

Sales of full-electric cars increased 47 percent, continuing their bounce back after falling 13 percent in January when government subsidies for battery-electric cars were significantly reduced. EVs had a 17.3 percent market share in May.

Gasoline cars are still the biggest sellers in Germany, with sales up 18 percent for a 35.5 percent market share. Diesel sales rose 3.6 percent for a 17.6 percent share.

Tesla was the biggest winner last month as sales rose 1,697 percent, followed by Alfa Romeo, which saw demand leap 170 percent. MG's sales increased 118 percent.

BMW had a 60 percent rise, while Dacia had a jump of 56 percent. Sales of VW, Germany’s No. 1 brand, rose 13 percent.

•    Download PDF here for German sales by brand

Among mass-market automakers whose sales fell were Opel, down 20 percent; Fiat, down 17 percent; Renault and Toyota, both down 12 percent and Ford, down 10 percent.

Through May, German sales have risen 10 percent to 1.11 million.