Electric cars hit 23% of sales in Europe, just 6% in the US

Electric cars sell four times better in Europe than in the US, according to industry figures

23% of new cars registered in Europe are electric. In the United States, 6%. The same industry, the same technology, two markets moving at different speeds. Between January and September 2026, according to industry figures, the electric car has consolidated its position in the Old Continent while in the US it has come to a standstill after the end of federal incentives. The gap is not technological: it is political.

Sales share and fleet share are not the same thing

The first confusion to clear up is one of vocabulary. One thing is the sales share — what percentage of new cars registered in a given period are electric — and another is the fleet, that is, how many of all the cars on the road are electric. In Biscay, the electric fleet does not reach 1%, according to local press data. Both figures are true and do not contradict each other: the fleet renews very slowly, and in Spain the average vehicle age exceeds 14 years. Even if only electric cars were sold from tomorrow, it would take more than a decade for that to show in the overall picture.

China and its 47%: the advantage of a planned economy

The third player is China, where pure electric cars reach 47% of sales in September and, adding plug-in hybrids, exceed 60%. Some attribute this to the fact that in a planned economy people buy what they are allowed to. The argument has its logic, but also its trap: Beijing has built the largest charging network in the world while the West argued about subsidies. And by the way, the country generates nearly 70% of its electricity from thermal power plants, which takes the shine off the green narrative.

The price of synthetic fuel and the 2035 trap

The EU spoke out almost a year ago about reviewing the 2035 ban on combustion vehicles. Biofuels are already at the pump: renewable diesel sells for between 1.60 and 1.80 euros per litre, cheaper than conventional diesel. Synthetics, according to industry forecasts, will arrive at between 2 and 3 euros per litre in 2030. The fine print: producing synthetic fuel requires concentrating energy, and that carries a thermodynamic cost that does not disappear by decree, according to one participant. Beet biofuel from Castile comes out at 0.50-0.70 euros per litre at the factory; Brazilian sugarcane ethanol, at 0.20-0.28. The difference is not agronomic: it is about bagasse and gas.

The experience of those who have already made the switch

Beyond the figures, there are drivers who have switched to electric without environmentalism or fashion playing a part. One of them reports 25,000 kilometres in 13 months with a battery of less than 60 kWh, trips of 350 to 750 kilometres, and an unexpected conclusion: when returning to a rental combustion car, it felt like driving a noisy old relic. On the other side, there is the doubt of those who wait: someone with a six-year-old car who fills the tank for almost 100 euros looks at the calendar and calculates how much time their car has left.

Lifespan, the blind spot of the electric narrative

The argument that is least disputed is the one that hurts most: longevity. Early electric cars from the last decade already suffer ridiculous ranges due to battery degradation, and replacing the battery pack in a 14-year-old car can cost 20,000 euros, according to one participant. No electric car will cheerfully reach 20 years the way many diesels do, that same participant maintains. That is the bill that never shows up in the sales figures.

How long will it take for the real fleet to resemble the registration statistics?