Gasoline cars accounted for less than 50% of sales. But 83% of new cars still have internal combustion engines.
In the first half of 2026, gasoline-only vehicles accounted for 49% of global new car sales, according to data from Mobility Global cited by Nikkei. This is the first time such a figure has been recorded, though it does not yet mean electric vehicles are dominant. Hybrids have taken over most of the market.
In 2021, gasoline vehicles still held a 73% share. From January to June 2026, 20.25 million were sold, 10% less than the previous year, with their share dropping from 52% to 49%. The overall automotive market shrank by about 5% during this period, per the International Energy Agency, so pure gasoline vehicles declined twice as fast as the market.
Power Type
Sales in First Half of 2026
Change
Share
Gasoline Only
20.25 million
-10%
49%
Hybrid
7.27 million
+10%
18%
Electric
6.87 million
+12%
17%
Diesel, PHEV and others
no data
no data
about 16%
The last 16% comes from the difference between the reported shares and the overall market. This includes diesel, plug-in hybrids, and less popular fuels.
Electric vehicles are growing, but not everywhere
Mobility Global attributes the faster shift away from gasoline to rising oil prices following the conflict in the Middle East. The biggest drop in gasoline car sales was recorded in China, at 26%, followed by Europe at 13%. In China alone, sales of gasoline cars and conventional hybrids dropped by 40% in August, while electric vehicles saw a slight increase.
In the European Union, from January to August, 1,641,333 electric vehicles and 1,634,733 gasoline cars were registered. ACEA data shows that gasoline lost 18.6% of its market share.
BEV sales in Europe rose by 32% in the first half of the year to 1.81 million units. Southeast Asia saw a 81% increase to 350,000 units, while Oceania experienced more than a doubling to 110,000 units. China still accounted for half of the world’s electric vehicle sales, though the figure of 3.44 million was 3% lower than the previous year. In North America, sales declined by 15%.
Yoshiaki Kawano of Mobility Global told Nikkei that few electric vehicle buyers return to gasoline or hybrid vehicles later on. He also expects demand to rise due to “consumers’ real needs rather than subsidies” as EV prices fall. In a July CDK survey, 94% of electric vehicle owners said they would not return to internal combustion engine cars.
In the U.S., electric vehicles are losing ground as hybrids gain customers
Cox Automotive expects around 239,000 electric vehicles to be sold in the U.S. in the third quarter of 2026. That represents roughly 6% of the market and a 45% decline from 437,000 units sold the previous year, when customers bought cars before the federal tax credit expired on September 30. Ford also reported an 80% quarterly drop in EV sales.
However, there was no return to traditional gasoline-powered vehicles. In the second quarter, the share of gasoline and diesel vehicles dropped from 77.6% to 76.8%, while hybrids rose from 13% to a record 16.3%. BEVs fell from 7.4% to 5.8%, and PHEVs dropped from 2% to 1.1%. The overall share of electrified vehicles increased from 22.4% to 23.2%, and gasoline averaged around $4.50 per gallon, 41% higher than the previous year.
The headline about the end of gasoline engines’ dominance is true, but it needs a caveat. 83% of new cars still have internal combustion engines, as hybrids also consume fuel. Only full data for 2026 will show whether the share of pure gasoline engines remains below half.
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