New figures: electric cars less popular
New figures show that car sales fell in January, mainly due to the sharp decline in fully electric cars.
Published on February 2, 2026

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Sales of new passenger cars fell sharply in January. Figures from BOVAG and RAI Vereniging show that 28,347 new cars were registered in the Netherlands last month. This represents a decline of more than 13 percent compared to January last year. Fully electric cars were particularly hard hit. The number of registrations came to 7,165, a decrease of 35.4 percent. As a result, the share of fully electric vehicles fell to 25.3 percent. In the same month a year earlier, this share was still 35.4 percent.
Hybrid cars are doing better
Hybrid cars, on the other hand, are doing better. Of these models, which combine an electric motor with a combustion engine, 17,571 were sold in January. That is an increase of 18.4 percent, meaning that hybrids now account for 62 percent of the market.
Tesla sells fewer electric cars
Volkswagen was the best-selling car brand in January with a market share of 8.5 percent. Kia, Hyundai, BMW, and Skoda followed at a distance. Tesla, which previously dominated the electric car market, saw sales fall to 307 vehicles, compared to 927 a year earlier.
