Mercedes-Benz sold 1 in 4 passenger cars in the third quarter as either battery electric vehicles (BEVs) or plug-in hybrids (PHEVs). Overall sales fell, but all-electric vehicle sales hit a record quarterly high.

InsideEVs and Mercedes-Benz said on Oct. 7 local time the company sold 407,200 passenger cars worldwide in the third quarter. The figure was down 8 percent from a year earlier. The drop was largely driven by China, where sales plunged 31 percent to 86,800. Passenger-car sales excluding China rose 1 percent. Europe rose 5 percent and North America rose 4 percent.

Over the same period, BEV sales surged to 68,400, up 61 percent from a year earlier and up 29 percent from the previous quarter. BEVs also reached a record 16.8 percent share of total passenger-car sales, up 7.2 percentage points from a year earlier. Plug-in vehicles including PHEVs accounted for 25 percent, or 1 in 4 of global sales.

Europe led the growth. European BEV sales rose 78 percent from a year earlier and 24 percent from the previous quarter, setting a quarterly record. About 1 in 3 passenger cars sold was a BEV. Sales of the new electric GLC more than tripled from the previous quarter. The electric CLA, GLC, GLB and GLA have sold out their remaining allocation in Europe this year, and the order backlog extends to 2027.

Van electrification also expanded. Third-quarter electric van sales rose 12 percent from a year earlier to 9,600. Electric vehicles accounted for 11 percent of total van sales globally and as much as 15 percent in Europe.

Mercedes-Benz is also expanding its new electric vehicle lineup, including the electric GLC and CLA, to markets such as the United States. With overall sales falling due to weakness in China, whether electric vehicles can establish themselves as a new growth driver is expected to be a key variable for future results.