Spain’s passenger-car market continued to expand in October despite the electoral climate and uncertainty over the future of incentives for electrified vehicles. Registrations reached 98,487 units, 1.8% more than in October 2025, according to data from manufacturers’ association Anfac, dealers’ association Faconauto and sellers’ association Ganvam.

The result was the market’s best October since 2007 and came despite two fewer working days than in the same month last year. The sector is now maintaining the pace needed to exceed 1.2 million passenger-car registrations by the end of 2026.

Between January and October, registrations totalled 1,010,545 units, up 6.2% year on year. Although the figure remains below 2019 levels, the associations said the performance provides a positive outlook for the final part of the year, even as the election and uncertainty over economic policy weigh on the sector.

Félix García, Anfac’s director of Communication and Marketing, described October’s result as historic and said the industry expects to pass 1.2 million registrations with room to spare by the end of the year, despite the electoral period.

Electrified vehicles remain a key driver of growth. Battery-electric and plug-in hybrid cars recorded 31,044 registrations in October, 43.1% more than a year earlier. Their combined share reached 31.5% of the market, nine percentage points higher than in October 2025.

In the first ten months of the year, plug-in models accumulated 248,343 registrations, an annual increase of 37.6%, and represented 24.6% of total passenger-car sales. The sector nevertheless warned that this momentum could weaken without continued public support. The Auto+ Plan has helped stimulate demand, but its initial impact has moderated and the available budget for 2026 is beginning to run out.

Raúl Morales, Faconauto’s director of Communication, said dealers had observed some slowdown in commercial activity during October. In addition to the reduced number of working days, he pointed to the fading of the plan’s initial boost after its online application process opened in September. He called for visibility over incentives in 2027 to prevent the electric-vehicle market from losing momentum.

Tania Puche, Ganvam’s director of Communication, also argued that support measures should not depend on electoral cycles. She warned that administrative uncertainty could affect consumers’ purchasing decisions, despite electrified models already accounting for around one-third of monthly registrations.

By sales channel, private buyers and rental companies supported the market, while company registrations declined. Private customers registered 52,686 cars, 2.6% more than a year earlier, and rental companies registered 7,267 units, an increase of 30.6%. Company registrations fell 3.3% to 38,534 units.

Average emissions from new passenger cars also decreased in October, reaching 91.8 grams of CO2 per kilometre, 8.5% below the figure recorded a year earlier. The average for the first ten months fell below 100 grams for the first time, to 99.3 grams per kilometre, as the share of electrified models continued to grow.

The positive performance of passenger cars was not replicated across the rest of the market. Light-commercial-vehicle registrations fell 2.1% in October to 16,318 units, although the year-to-date total remained positive at 163,171 vehicles, up 5.4%.

Registrations of industrial vehicles, buses, coaches and minibuses also declined, falling 10.1% year on year to 4,165 units. This ended four consecutive months of growth, although the January-to-October total still rose 8% to 31,183 vehicles.

Sources: elDiario.es.