Norway: Tesla Model Y made up a quarter of new passenger car sales in September
Norway recorded 18,511 new electric car sales in September - while all other powertrain types saw only double-digit registration numbers. The EV share of new vehicle sales thus climbed to 98.8 percent. This is largely thanks to Tesla's electric SUVs. Moreover, electric passenger cars now lead the way across the country's existing fleet.
Image: Tesla
In September, 18,733 new passenger cars were registered in Norway, marking a strong increase of 31 per cent compared to the same month last year. Only in June of this year did BEV registrations reach higher absolute numbers (19,558 units). The relative electrification rate of 98.8 per cent aligns with Norway’s profile: so far this year, pure electric cars already account for 97.8 per cent of all new registrations. This consistency marks the culmination of a years-long shift in powertrain technology. “The Norwegian new car market is now almost entirely electric,” the Norwegian Road Information Authority (OFV) recently stated. “Competition is therefore increasingly focused on which brands and models perform best in terms of price, range, space, delivery time, and financing.”
Before examining the models, a quick note on the baseline statistics: in the first nine months of the year, registrations in the country are now 1.7 per cent above the same period in 2023 (in absolute numbers: 115,196 vs. 113,325 passenger cars) – and this follows a relatively weak start to the year. However, since September registrations alone were up by around 30 per cent year-on-year, the market has since recovered.
When it comes to powertrains, electric cars dominated with 18,511 new registrations in September, leaving little room for competition. The other powertrains can be dispatched quickly: 77 new diesel cars accounted for a market share of 0.4 per cent, while 14 petrol cars represented 0.1 per cent of all new registrations. For completeness, there were also 29 petrol plug-in hybrids (0.2 per cent), 99 petrol full hybrids (0.5 per cent), and 3 diesel plug-in hybrids (statistically 0 per cent).
Looking at individual models, the Tesla Model Y once again stands out by a wide margin with 4,810 new registrations in September, accounting for a quarter of the market. Behind Tesla, the competitive landscape is more diverse: Volvo’s EX30 takes second place (576 units). Close behind are the Mercedes-Benz GLC (568) and Toyota bZ4X (567), followed in fifth and sixth place by the VW ID.4 (516) and BYD EVO 4×4 (405). Rounding out the top 10 are the Audi Q4 e-tron (378), BMW iX3 (352), Kia EV5 (350), and Toyota Land Cruiser (334). The ranking shows that BYD currently has the only Chinese electric model in Norway’s top 10. However, the top 20 also includes other models such as the BYD Sealion 7 and XPeng G9. The following table shows the ranking in detail:
| Rank | Model | Number | Share |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | Tesla Model Y | 4.810 | 25.68 % |
| 2 | Volvo EX30 | 576 | 3.07 % |
| 3 | Mercedes-Benz GLC | 568 | 3.03 % |
| 4 | Toyota bZ4X | 567 | 3.03 % |
| 5 | Volkswagen ID.4 | 516 | 2.75 % |
| 6 | BYD EVO 4×4 | 405 | 2.16 % |
| 7 | Audi Q4 e-tron | 378 | 2.02 % |
| 8 | BMW iX3 | 352 | 1.88 % |
| 9 | Kia EV5 | 350 | 1.87 % |
| 10 | Toyota Urban Cruiser | 334 | 1.78 % |
| 11 | Ford Explorer EV | 332 | 1.77 % |
| 12 | Škoda Elroq | 329 | 1.76 % |
| 13 | Toyota C-HR+ | 329 | 1.76 % |
| 14 | Volvo EX40 | 329 | 1.76 % |
| 15 | BYD Sealion 7 | 304 | 1.62 % |
| 16 | Volkswagen ID.7 | 291 | 1.55 % |
| 17 | Škoda Enyaq | 281 | 1.50 % |
| 18 | BMW iX1 | 260 | 1.39 % |
| 19 | Smart #5 | 237 | 1.27 % |
| 20 | XPeng G9 | 232 | 1.24 % |
| 21 | XPeng G6 | 225 | 1.20 % |
| 22 | MG MG4 | 219 | 1.17 % |
| 23 | Zeekr 7GT | 215 | 1.15 % |
| 24 | Volkswagen ID.3 | 205 | 1.09 % |
| 25 | Changan Deepal S05 | 175 | 0.93 % |
| 26 | Polestar 2 | 174 | 0.93 % |
| 27 | Mercedes-Benz GLB | 166 | 0.89 % |
| 28 | Cupra Raval | 161 | 0.86 % |
| 29 | Subaru Uncharted | 161 | 0.86 % |
| 30 | BMW i4 | 155 | 0.83 % |
The Norwegian Road Information Authority (OFV) also highlights that XPeng and BYD together achieved a market share of 7.1 per cent in September. “This represents more than a doubling compared to 3.5 per cent in the same month last year.” And speaking of brands: Tesla became Norway’s largest car brand in September with 4,935 newly registered passenger cars and a market share of 26.3 per cent. This puts Tesla back at the top for the first time since June. In July, Toyota was the largest brand, and in August, Volkswagen. Interestingly, while Tesla increased its registrations by 2.2 per cent compared to September of last year, its market share fell from 33.7 to 26.3 per cent.
OFV Managing Director Geir Inge Stokke notes that many brands are currently growing – “and the largest brand now holds less than a third of the market. Competition has become more balanced, which benefits car buyers. When multiple brands compete for the same customers, everyone has to improve in terms of price, equipment, and service.”
Finally, let’s look at the existing fleet: as of 30 September, 1,043,983 electric passenger cars were registered in Norway. The country surpassed the one-million mark this year. This figure now represents 35.3 per cent of the total passenger car fleet. Electric cars thus form the largest powertrain group among all passenger cars registered on Norway’s roads – ahead of diesel cars at 29.4 per cent and petrol cars at 22.9 per cent.
