Mercedes’ EV sales slump at the start of the year

Mercedes-Benz Cars sold a total of 40,700 electric cars in the first quarter of 2025, 14 per cent less than in the same period last year. The van division performed better, with sales of electric vans up 59 per cent.

At the Mercedes-Benz Group level, EV sales in the first quarter of 2025 totalled 45,500 vehicles – i.e. the passenger car division and the van business combined. In Q1/2024, the manufacturer still sold 50,500 electric vehicles, of which 47,500 units were in the passenger car business. In Q1 2025, Mercedes-Benz Cars only managed 40,700 BEV deliveries – 14 per cent down on the previous year.

“Overall sales were influenced by model transition dynamics in the Entry segment, especially in Germany after the electric smart phased out in Europe,” Mercedes said in its statement. “The upcoming all-new CLA will be the first of many new Mercedes-Benz battery electric vehicles.” The first examples of the new CLA are expected to reach European markets ‘in summer’. So that could still be the case in the second quarter, but certainly in the third.

With the phasing out of the electric Smart, which still contributed to Mercedes’ balance sheet, and further model changes in the entry-level segment, the particularly high-volume model series were under pressure. In the top-end segment, on the other hand, Mercedes was able to slightly increase its share of sales, while Mercedes-AMG grew globally by 17 per cent. Sales of electric cars are falling, while particularly powerful petrol engines are booming at Mercedes.

Mercedes-Benz Cars sold 446,300 passenger cars in the first quarter of 2025. The 40,700 BEVs thus account for an electric share of 9.1 per cent of total sales. Added to this are 46,100 plug-in hybrids, which have increased by eight per cent. If you include the part-time electric vehicles, 19.4 per cent of Mercedes passenger cars were electrified.

At Mercedes-Benz Vans, total sales fell by 21 per cent to 82,900 vans and transporters, although there was a positive trend in electric vehicles: “We have increased sales of fully electric vans by 59% which translates to a global BEV share of 6% in the first quarter,” said Klaus Rehkugler, Head of Mercedes-Benz Vans Sales & Marketing.

mercedes-benz.com