The automotive year 2022 was characterized by the electric and SUV boom. This is also reflected in the top five best-selling cars in Germany. There are definitely surprises in the list.

With every new year, the question also arises: Which car models did the Germans particularly like last year? For decades there was certainty that the VW Golf would be right at the front again, as it was last year. But in 2022 there were repeated reports that the favorite of the Germans had been dethroned. In terms of monthly balances, this was indeed the case. But did Tesla’s Model 3 actually manage to finally cement the turning point in the KBA statistics over the year as a whole? Here are the top 5 best-selling cars in 2022.

Fifth place – Opel Corsa

The number five of the best-selling new cars in Germany caused a real surprise, because small cars are hardly in demand anymore. In addition, the Corsa was actually always the eternal number two in its segment behind the VW Polo. But the little Wolfsburg didn’t even make it into the top ten in 2022 with 26,402 new registrations, while the Corsa F, introduced in 2019, was able to sell an impressive 50,191 without any facelift measures. Does the Corsa owe this success to the e-car boom? Partly. In the electric charts, the Corsa-e only occupies seventh place with around 15,000 new registrations. After all, more than 35,000 Corsa were sold last year with classic combustion engines. Chapeau.

Fourth place – Fiat 500

Small cars are actually in demand even less than small cars. And yet, with the Fiat 500, a representative of this vehicle class threatened with extinction has made it to fourth place among the best-selling cars. Unlike the Opel Corsa, this coup by the Italians can be clearly attributed to the great demand for electric vehicles. 29,635 of the total of 52,337 new Cinquecento registered in Germany are attributable to the young electric version. This makes the little Turiner even the number three among electric cars and cheekily offers the Tesla models 3 and Y forehead. In any case, the race for the electric car throne should be exciting in 2023.

Third place – VW T-Roc

In addition to an electric, there was also another SUV boom in 2022. In the C segment in particular, the pseudo off-roaders are still in demand as an alternative to the classic compact model. In the case of the T-Roc, it is ultimately a jacked-up Golf. With the body shape you actually buy more disadvantages than advantages, but the customers are on stronghold charm and the more comfortable entry. In the case of the T-Roc, a facelift was also added in the spring as a sales-promoting measure. He was able to lure 58,942 customers to the tills without any electric drive technology.

Second place – VW Tiguan

With 59,136 new registrations, VW sold just 194 more units of the Tiguan SUV model, which took second place in the favor of Germans. The Wolfsburg-based company, which is also technically closely related to the Golf, has been in the VW program in its current form for 7 years and is therefore about to be replaced. Unlike the T-Roc, however, the Tiguan is also available as a plug-in hybrid. A genre that was in demand last year thanks to generous financial support from the state. With the end of the environmental premium for PHEVs, the demand for plug-ins is likely to decrease significantly in 2023. In addition, a new Tiguan generation is announced for 2023. So it should be exciting to see how the SUV model will fare in terms of registration numbers in the near future.

First place – VW Golf

This also applies to the eternal number one, the VW Golf, which in 2023 with 84,282 new registrations was once again able to assert itself as the “favorite of Germans” by a clear margin. However, it was not long ago that VW sold more than 200,000 copies of the compact classic per year. The Golf 8 is now a long way from these heights, which can be explained at least in part by the success of the T-Roc and Tiguan. Instead of buying a Golf again, quite a few loyal customers of the compact class king switch to the SUV sister model.

Demand for SUVs and e-cars will probably continue to rise in 2023. The VW Golf will bow to these trends and may finally have to say goodbye to the throne this year.