- BMW surpassed Mercedes-Benz and Audi in EV sales last year.
- The maker of the i4 sold roughly 20,000 more EVs than its two competitors combined.
BMW’s electric vehicles had a “significant” increase in global sales last year. So much so, that the German automaker managed an impressive feat: it sold more EVs in 2024 than two of its homegrown rivals combined.
Last year, BMW sold 368,475 EVs worldwide (excluding Mini and Rolls-Royce). By comparison, Mercedes-Benz sold 185,059 EVs, while Audi delivered “more than” 164,000 fully-electric models to customers worldwide–a combined 349,060 units.
That’s a huge achievement, and it goes to show that BMW’s approach of offering battery-powered alternatives to its gas-powered models is working. In 2024, BMW’s global EV sales went up 13.5% (and reached a new record in the United States), while Mercedes-Benz and Audi saw sales declines of 23.1% and 8% respectively.
Mini and Rolls-Royce, the other car brands in the BMW Group portfolio, also saw growth in the EV segment last year. Mini sold 56,171 battery-powered cars (up 24.3% compared to 2023), while Rolls-Royce sold a record 1,890 Spectre EVs (up from the 326 EVs delivered in 2023).
In total, the BMW Group sold nearly 2.5 million cars last year, which is 4% fewer than in 2023. However, the share of EVs went up from 14.7% to 17.4%. That’s impressive, but it’s still far from the company’s goal of having 50% of sales from EVs by the end of the decade.
The group’s hopes hinge on the uuccess of the pcoming Neue Klasse models, the first of which will be the i3 and iX3. They’re all-electric versions of two of the company’s best-sellers–the 3 Series sedan and X3 crossover–which are slated to roll off the assembly line later this year.
More are on the way, though–BMW said at least six new EVs would go on sale by 2028. All Neue Klasse models are touted as offering over 300 miles of range on a full charge, with up to 560 miles for the longest-range versions. Ultra-fast charging courtesy of 800-volt battery packs is also a big selling point, together with multiple efficiency enhancements compared to the current generation of EVs.
