On the one hand, it is the continuation of the electrification at full speed of the new car fleet. More than one in two new cars (52.7%) registered last year were electrified – hybrid or 100% electric. Zero-emission vehicles have also climbed to 28.5% of the total, according to statistics from Febiac, the Belgian Automobile and Cycle Federation. The tax advantages granted to these engines for company cars but also the bonus from the Flemish government for the purchase of an electric car of up to 40,000 euros explain this performance. Gasoline remains, by far, the most popular engine, due to the interest of individuals in cars that are much less expensive than their electric version.
BMW leader of the Belgian market for the fourth consecutive year
The other development is precisely the rebalancing between company cars and individuals: the proportion was 62% and 38% last year, compared to 69% and 31 in favor of fleets in 2023. Enough to whet the appetite of brands to one week now from the opening of the Auto Show (from Saturday January 11).
BMW, again and again
The big winner is therefore for the 4th consecutive year the Bavarian manufacturer BMW, and despite a small decline of 0.30% due to a month of December in free fall (-45.56%). This does not prevent BMW from accentuating its domination with a market share of 11.25%, compared to 10.61% a year earlier.
“To have such momentum, you need a complete fleet.” explained Belux CEO Alexander Wehr in December. BMW is in fact in symbiosis with the Belgian market: it is a premium brand with a good range of electric vehicles. Now, what has worked in Belgium since the start of the year? Premium – 35% of total sales – and electric cars – + 43% in the premium segment –, thanks to fleets of course.
BMW, Mercedes, Volkswagen: Donald Trump declares war on German manufacturers
Dacia, moving upmarket
The Dacia brand is for its part the moral winner, climbing from 9th to 5th place in twelve months, with an increase in sales of 16.46% in 2024. Dacia even ranked second in the month of December, with an increase of 53.56% in its registrations, to 2,113 compared to 1,900 for BMW. We must undoubtedly see the effect of a great marketing campaign in the fall with a proposition starting from 10,590 euros for its Spring electric model (the Essential version currently starts at 16,990 euros). The Spring could even cost 7,942 euros for a buyer domiciled in Flanders thanks to the regional bonus.
Dacia is in any case the preferred brand of individuals, who do not shy away from this brand often presented as the low cost of the Renault group. The Romanian brand has in any case an additional argument to underline its move upmarket: the new Duster is one of seven finalists for the title of car of the year 2025 among the 42 models initially competing. It’s not nothing.
Leapmotor does better than Lancia
In the top 10, the big loser is Peugeot, which goes from 5th to 9th place, with a drop of 25.48% in its registrations over one year. All the group’s brands are in the same boat: Citroën remains 14th in the ranking but with a drop of 22.52%. It’s even – 30.60% for Opel (16th) and even -36.26% for Fiat (25th). Leapmotor (51st), the Chinese brand of which the Stellantis group is the majority shareholder, even manages to beat Lancia (52nd), the premium brand relaunched with major marketing campaigns, with 85 registrations against 77. The distribution model is often blamed for these poor performances. Stellantis Belux is, however, confident that 2025 will be the year of recovery.
BMW, Volvo, Audi…: how the most common models of company cars will now be taxed
Outstanding performances from the Chinese
And then there are extraordinary performances. This is, for example, the 346.87% increase of the Chinese BYD (27th), thanks to the expansion of its available electric range and the arrival on the Belgian market of a hybrid model. It is also the jump of 481.68% for smart (34th) for 762 registrations. Here too, the range of these electric cars manufactured in China has expanded. Smart #5 will be presented at the show. But what about the 23,000% increase in registrations of the Chinese manufacturer, XPeng, which saw its sales of electric vehicles increase from a single car in 2023 to 231 in 2024. This explains that.
