Europe’s electric-vehicle leaderboard just flipped—and the ramifications reach far beyond the showroom floor. In July 2025, Tesla (TSLA) logged fewer than 1,000 new registrations in the UK (-60 % YoY) and barely 1,100 in Germany (-55 %), its two largest European markets. At the same time, Chinese up-start BYD barreled ahead, quadrupling UK sales and boosting German deliveries almost five-fold, seizing market share that Tesla had dominated for a decade.
What changed so suddenly?
Part of the damage is self-inflicted: Tesla (TSLA) has pulled the plug on Model S and Model X orders across Europe, leaving only two mass-market models on offer just as subsidies tilt toward cheaper price points.
BYD, meanwhile, races in the opposite direction. “We have more models—it’s very simple,” EVP Stella Li said this summer, pointing to a line-up that now spans everything from €19 k city cars to premium SUVs. Add an incoming Hungary plant that will sidestep any future China-EU tariff war, and Europe’s buyers suddenly have a home-grown BYD option where Tesla once stood unchallenged.
The Macro Wildcard—Tariffs and Trade Tensions
Europe’s decision to slap tariffs of up to 45 % on Chinese-built EVs still looms over the market. Negotiations continue, but a breakdown could lift BYD’s European build-out from hedge to necessity—and further squeeze Tesla’s imported margins.
ETF Lens: Who’s Really Driving Your EV Exposure?
Global X Autonomous & EV ETF (DRIV): keeps Tesla to a modest single-digit weight (3.02%) and holds virtually no BYD, offering a diversified “steady-hand” approach.
KraneShares EV & Future Mobility ETF (KARS): owns stakes in both automakers—roughly similar in size TSLA (3.21%) and BYD (2.86%), giving holders a built-in hedge as the two giants trade punches.
ARK Autonomous Tech & Robotics ETF (ARKQ): A high-conviction Tesla play, with the stock sitting near the top of its roster at about 10 % of assets, making it the purest bet on a Musk comeback.
Bottom Line
Europe is becoming the world’s most hotly contested EV battleground. BYD’s model breadth, rapid localization, and aggressive pricing are winning share just as Tesla’s lineup narrows and political noise grows. For investors, knowing whether your ETF is “Team Tesla,” “Team BYD,” or a neutrality pact can make all the difference as this tug-of-war plays out.
Ready to see which fund best aligns with your outlook? Compare DRIV, KARS, and ARKQ side-by-side in our ETF Compare Tool
