Europe's diesel collapse — what 2020-2024 registrations show

Background

Registration data for DE, ES, FR, and IT show a clear retreat for diesel between 2020 and 2024, with the headline diesel share at 16.9 in 2024 and a listed change of -16.9 percentage points across the period covered by the findings. Over the same span, electric reached 11.2, with a listed gain of 11.2 percentage points.

The country detail is most usable from 2022 through 2024, because diesel, petrol, and electric shares are listed as 0.0 in 2020 and 2021. Even with that limitation, the direction is consistent: diesel is losing ground in all 4 markets, while petrol remains the largest powertrain share in each country in 2024.

That helps answer a common reader question about why diesel cars are disappearing. In these registrations, the immediate pattern is not a diesel rebound but a broad shift in mix. By 2024, petrol stood at 57.1 in DE, 69.6 in ES, 62.0 in FR, and 63.9 in IT, while electric reached 13.9 in DE, 5.4 in ES, 16.5 in FR, and 4.2 in IT.

What 2022 to 2024 registrations show

Across the 4 countries, diesel share fell in every market from 2022 to 2024.

Country	2022 diesel %	2023 diesel %	2024 diesel %
DE	21.5	22.5	21.4
ES	23.4	18.1	16.3
FR	18.4	11.6	8.6
IT	24.0	22.4	19.1

FR shows the sharpest visible retreat in the published shares, moving from 18.4 in 2022 to 11.6 in 2023 and 8.6 in 2024. ES also moved down steadily, from 23.4 to 18.1 to 16.3. IT remained higher than FR and ES in 2024 at 19.1, but still below 24.0 in 2022. DE is the outlier in that diesel edged up from 21.5 in 2022 to 22.5 in 2023 before easing to 21.4 in 2024.

For readers asking why diesel is going up, or why diesel is going up again, the findings support only a narrow answer: DE recorded 22.5 in 2023 after 21.5 in 2022. The broader regional picture in these 4 markets is still decline, not recovery.

The replacement mix: petrol first, electric second

The same registration tables show where diesel share has gone. Petrol is the dominant winner in every country, and electric has also expanded in several markets.

Country	2022 petrol %	2024 petrol %	2022 electric %	2024 electric %
DE	45.5	57.1	18.3	13.9
ES	65.5	69.6	3.7	5.4
FR	55.8	62.0	12.8	16.5
IT	57.5	63.9	3.7	4.2

In FR, diesel fell from 18.4 in 2022 to 8.6 in 2024 while petrol rose from 55.8 to 62.0 and electric rose from 12.8 to 16.5. ES shows a similar pattern, with diesel at 23.4 in 2022 and 16.3 in 2024, while petrol moved from 65.5 to 69.6 and electric from 3.7 to 5.4. IT also shifted away from diesel, though electric remained at 4.2 in both 2023 and 2024.

DE is more mixed. Diesel was 21.5 in 2022, 22.5 in 2023, and 21.4 in 2024. Petrol climbed from 45.5 to 57.1 over 2022 to 2024, while electric moved from 18.3 in 2022 to 19.0 in 2023 and then down to 13.9 in 2024.

Country volumes and market context

The registration totals show that these share changes happened in large markets, but not always in the same volume environment.

Country	2022 total	2023 total	2024 total
DE	2,559,638	2,749,057	2,712,259
ES	837,393	966,712	1,047,377
FR	1,635,620	1,886,295	1,817,361
IT	1,308,812	1,560,177	1,550,879

DE remained the largest market in the group, with 2,712,259 registrations in 2024. ES rose from 837,393 in 2022 to 1,047,377 in 2024 even as diesel share fell from 23.4 to 16.3. FR reached 1,886,295 in 2023 before easing to 1,817,361 in 2024, with diesel dropping to 8.6. IT moved from 1,308,812 in 2022 to 1,550,879 in 2024 while diesel declined from 24.0 to 19.1.

Emissions trend alongside diesel decline

A second question readers often ask is whether lower diesel share is showing up in average CO2 results. The answer is mixed by country.

Country	2022 CO2 avg	2023 CO2 avg	2024 CO2 avg
DE	106.0	113.0	117.1
ES	121.6	117.4	117.7
FR	102.9	96.7	94.1
IT	119.1	120.0	119.8

FR is the clearest case of diesel decline coinciding with lower average CO2, moving from 102.9 in 2022 to 96.7 in 2023 and 94.1 in 2024. ES also improved from 121.6 in 2022 to 117.4 in 2023, before a slight move to 117.7 in 2024.

DE moved the other way, from 106.0 in 2022 to 113.0 in 2023 and 117.1 in 2024, despite diesel staying above 21.0 across those years. IT was broadly flat at 119.1, 120.0, and 119.8.

Limitations

The findings do not include fuel prices, retail diesel cost, December 2024 diesel rates, export flows from Russia, or policy detail on diesel restrictions. They also do not provide explanatory variables for why Europe uses diesel. As a result, this dataset can describe registration outcomes and average CO2 trends, but not the causes behind diesel price moves or supply disruptions.

There is also a data gap in powertrain shares for 2020 and 2021, where diesel, petrol, and electric are listed as 0.0 for all 4 countries. That means the most reliable comparison for fuel mix is 2022 to 2024.

Frequently asked questions

Q: Why are diesel cars disappearing in these European markets? A: The registration mix shifted away from diesel in all 4 countries from 2022 to 2024. Diesel moved from 21.5 to 21.4 in DE, 23.4 to 16.3 in ES, 18.4 to 8.6 in FR, and 24.0 to 19.1 in IT, while petrol remained high and electric reached 16.5 in FR and 13.9 in DE.

Q: Is diesel going up again in Europe? A: The findings show only one partial rebound: DE moved from 21.5 in 2022 to 22.5 in 2023 before slipping to 21.4 in 2024. ES, FR, and IT all declined across 2022, 2023, and 2024.

Q: Which country still has the highest diesel share in 2024? A: DE had 21.4 in 2024, IT had 19.1, ES had 16.3, and FR had 8.6. Among these 4 markets, DE was highest in 2024.

Q: Did electric replace diesel everywhere? A: Electric increased in ES from 3.7 in 2022 to 5.4 in 2024 and in FR from 12.8 to 16.5. In DE, electric was 18.3 in 2022, 19.0 in 2023, and 13.9 in 2024, while IT was 3.7 in 2022 and 4.2 in 2024.

Q: What happened to average CO2 as diesel declined? A: FR fell from 102.9 in 2022 to 94.1 in 2024, and ES moved from 121.6 to 117.7. DE rose from 106.0 to 117.1, while IT was 119.1 in 2022 and 119.8 in 2024.

Q: Does this dataset show diesel prices in Europe today? A: No. The findings cover registrations and average CO2 for 2020 through 2024 in DE, ES, FR, and IT, but do not include diesel price data.