Trends Analysis of the Israeli market for new vehicles - Q1 2024

Registration Data

Registration by Engine Type

In Q1 2024, Israel’s automotive market continued to pivot significantly towards electric and alternative fuel vehicles, with traditional petrol engines seeing a persistent decline. Petrol vehicles comprised 48% of new registrations, marking a continuous decrease from 51% in Q4 2023 and a more noticeable drop from 55% in Q1 2023, and a substantial fall from 59% in Q1 2022, underscoring a steady move away from petrol dominance.

Electric vehicles showcased a remarkable upward trend, securing 25% of the market share in Q1 2024. This represents a considerable rise from 18% in Q4 2023 and 16% in Q1 2023, more than doubling from just 10% in Q1 2022. This rapid growth highlights the accelerating adoption and consumer shift towards electric vehicles.

Hybrid vehicles held 16% of the market in Q1 2024, reflecting stability from Q4 2023 showing increase from 13% in Q1 2023, and a significant drop from the 25% in Q1 2022.

Registration by Segment Type

In Q1 2024, Crossover/SUV segment saw a decrease in its market dominance with a 62.9% share in Q1 2024, down from 65.0% in Q4 2023 and a decrease from 65.9% in Q1 2023, although it remains significantly higher than the 50.8% in Q1 2022. This illustrates a slight reduction from its peak but still shows strong consumer preference for larger SUVs.

Hatchbacks saw an increase in market share to 17.8% in Q1 2024, rising from 16.3% in Q4 2023. This is a recovery from a slight dip to 16.3% in Q1 2023, returning to the level observed in Q1 2022 at 18.8%. This indicates a rebound in popularity for hatchbacks after a temporary fluctuation.

Sedans also experienced a shift in market share to 13.1% in Q1 2024, slightly up from 12.9% in Q4 2023. This marks an improvement from 10.1% in Q1 2023 but still falls short of the 22.2% held in Q1 2022, suggesting a partial recovery amid ongoing competitive pressures from other segments.

Registration by Category

SUV-C segment dominated the market with a robust 38.0% share of new vehicle registrations in Q1 2024, marking a slight increase from 37.4% in Q4 2023. This continued growth from 35.9% in Q1 2023 and a significant jump from 27.8% in Q1 2022 underscores the enduring appeal of larger, versatile vehicles in Israel.

SUV-B category - while still significant, observed a reduction to 12.1% in Q1 2024, down from 15.6% in Q4 2023 and a more notable decrease from 16.9% in Q1 2023, reflecting a downward trend from the previous year's higher interest levels.

The Car-C segment saw its market share increase to 13.4% in Q1 2024, rebounding from 10.6% in Q4 2023. However, this is still an improvement from the lower 7.0% in Q1 2023 but not quite reaching the much higher 18.1% in Q1 2022, indicating some recovery but overall variability in consumer interest over the past years. Lastly, Car-B segment's witnessed a reduction in its market share to 8.3% in Q1 2024, down from 9.4% in Q4 2023. This figure continues the downward trend from 12.1% in Q1 2023 and 10.6% in Q1 2022, indicating a shift away from smaller vehicle categories as consumer preferences evolve.

Registration by Country of Origin

European Vehicles retained their lead but exhibited a decline, representing 29.3% of the market, a decrease from 32.7% in Q4 2023. This trend marks a continued downward shift from 35.1% in Q1 2022, reflecting a gradual reduction in the dominance of European manufacturers within the Israeli market.

Chinese vehicles showed significant growth, securing 23.1% in Q1 2024, up markedly from 17.5% in Q4 2023 and 17% in Q1 2023, and a dramatic increase from just 4.5% in Q1 2022.

South Korean displayed a robust presence, accounting for 18.2% in Q1 2024. This figure is a slight decrease from 19.7% in Q4 2023 but shows an overall decline from the 27.6% observed in Q1 2022, reflecting some volatility but still holding a strong position in the market.

Japanese vehicles maintained stability, slightly increasing to 14.2% in Q1 2024, up from 13.7% in Q1 2022. The Turkish-made vehicles recorded 8.2% in Q1 2024, down from a peak of 9.1% in Q1 2023 but still higher than 7.1% in Q1 2022, suggesting a short-term peak followed by a slight retreat.