23 September 2025
While battery-electric vehicle (BEV) sales in China continued their impressive growth in July, plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) struggled. Autovista24 special content editor Phil Curry examines the latest figures from EV Volumes.
China’s PHEV market suffered its lowest year-on-year result since June 2020, as deliveries of new models struggled in July.
In total, 446,913 PHEVs were sold in China during the month, according to the latest data from EV Volumes. This represented a 3.2% increase compared to July 2024. It is the worst result since a 51.4% decline during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, the country’s BEV sector recorded an improvement compared to July 2024, with an increase of 34.5%. In total, 633,311 sales were recorded, as the technology continued to dominate the Chinese electric vehicle (EV) market.
Difficult month for PHEVs
For the first time this year, the BYD Seal 06 topped the monthly PHEV chart, with 23,787 units delivered. The model has slowly climbed the chart this year and has overtaken its stablemates to top the table. Its sales improved by 9.8% compared to July 2024, while its 5.3% market share was up 0.3 percentage points (pp).
In second place was the Aito M8. The model first saw sales recorded in China in April, with deliveries increasing each following month. July saw 21,564 units take to the roads, meaning a 4.8% market share.
The BYD Qin Plus, which topped the market in June, dropped to third in July, with 20,000 units delivered. This was a fall of 31.2% compared to the same point last year. The model lost traction across the first seven months of the year, with this volume in July down by 31.2%. This meant its market share fell by 2.2pp, to 4.5%.
Fourth went to the BYD Destroyer 05, with 16,180 units taking to Chinese roads. This was a slide of 13.4%, while its percentage of the overall PHEV total fell 0.7pp, to 3.6%.
Completing the top half of the table was the BYD Song Plus, with 15,000 units, a decline of 47%. Having not been out of the top two across the first half, this was a drop for the model. It lost volume in six of the first seven months of 2025. Whether this is a trend of position decline or an anomalous result remains to be seen. The model lost 3.2pp of its market share year on year, to 3.4%.
Mixed results for BYD
The Li Auto L6 ended July in sixth, with a drop of 40.3%, to 14,830 units. Its 3.3% share of the market was down by 2.4pp compared to the same month last year. Seventh went to the Buick GL8, which re-entered the table with 12,437 deliveries. This represented a 210.8% increase compared to last year, with a 1.9pp jump in market share, to 2.8%.
A trio of BYD models rounded out the top 10. In eighth was the Song L, with 12,000 units, up 18.3%. It represented 2.7% of the market, up 0.3pp. Ninth went to the BYD Qin L, with another 12,000-unit total, but this was down by 63%. It saw the biggest share drop in the top 10, with a 4.8pp decline to 2.7%.
Finally, the BYD Song Pro ended the month in 10th, with 11,880 deliveries, a decline of 35.2%. It held a 2.7% share of the PHEV total, a drop of 1.6pp compared to the same month last year.
PHEV table tightens
The monthly results have tightened the top of the annual PHEV chart in July. While the BYD Song Plus retained its top spot, its lead over the BYD Qin Plus almost halved.
The Song Plus sold 134,213 units over the first seven months of the year, for a 4.6% market share. However, with 128,412 deliveries, the Qin Plus was just 5,801 units behind, with a 4.4% hold of the market.
Thanks to its strong performance in July, the BYD Seal 06 jumped into third. It recorded 119,599 sales between January and July, and a 4.1% market share. Its gain was at the cost of the BYD Song Pro and Li Auto L6, which ended the period in fourth and fifth, respectively.
The Song Pro saw 112,020 deliveries in the seven month period, and a 3.9% market share. Just 836 units back, the L6 achieved 111,184 sales and a 3.8% share.
Sixth went to the BYD Qin L, with 106,600 sales and 3.7% of the market. The BYD Song L ended in seventh, with 88,500 deliveries and a 3.1% share. The Galaxy Starship 7, which showed much promise at the beginning of the year, remained eighth. It reached 79,857 sales and a 2.8% market share.
Having not placed in July’s top 10, the Starship 7 lost ground to the BYD Destroyer 05. It remained ninth, but its 78,038-unit total in the first seven months of the year was just 1,819 models behind. It held 2.7% of the PHEV total in the period.
Finally, the Aito M9 remained in 10th, despite not featuring in the monthly top table. Its 67,298-unit volume represented 2.3% of China’s PHEV market.
Geely Geome Xingyuan impresses
The Geely Geome Xingyuan took the monthly top spot in July, as it continues its impressive run in the country. Having first gone on sale with limited numbers in September 2024, the Xingyuan has been a standout BEV this year.
In total, 44,286 units were delivered in China, meaning a 7% market share. This put it 13,520 sales ahead of the Tesla Model Y in second.
The US model had its strongest volume month outside of the quarterly end periods of March and June. However, its 30,766-unit total was not high enough to prevent a decline. The Model Y experienced a 7.6% drop year on year, while its market share fell 2.2pp, to sit at 4.9% in the month.
The Wuling Mini achieved 26,789 sales, bouncing back into the top three, a feat it has not achieved since topping the table in April. This was an improvement of 69.9% over July 2024, with a 0.9pp increase in its hold of the BEV market.
Fourth went to the Xiaomi SU7, another model that has performed well in 2025, but without the high volumes of the Xingyuan. Still, July saw the model achieve 24,410 sales, up 86.1% year on year. It represented 3.9% of the BEV market in the month, up 1.1pp.
Rounding out the top five was the BYD Seagull. The model struggled in July, with 22,941 deliveries, a 34.1% drop. The model suffered the biggest market share decline in the top 10 as a result, with figures 3.8pp down, to 3.6%.
Further model growth in China
The Xpeng M03 took sixth in July. Having gone on sale in August 2024, the model achieved 15,704 sales, with a 2.5% market share.
In seventh, the Changan Lumin saw a 28.8% rise in sales, with 13,186 units. Having joined the top 10 in June, its strong growth did not result in a boost to its market share. The Lumin took 2.1% of total BEV sales, a decline of just 0.1pp year on year.
Just like the PHEV market in July, BYD rounded out the top 10 with a trio of models. The Dolphin topped this pile, up 3.4% in eighth with 12,865 units delivered. However, with increased competition, it dropped 0.6pp in its market share, to 2%.
The BYD Qin L, which started sales in March, ended July with 12,490 units, and a 2% market share. The top 10 was completed by the BYD Yuan Up, with 12,451 deliveries. This was a 10.9% year-on-year jump. But its market share also declined due to increased competition, with its 2% hold down 0.4pp.
Extending its lead
Thanks to its good July performance, the Geely Geome Xingyuan extended its lead in the first seven months of 2025. In total, the model achieved 249,377 deliveries, with a 6% market share.
Jumping into second was the Tesla Model Y, with 202,257 sales between January and July. This was 47,120 units behind the Xingyuan. It will need to work hard to overcome this gap if it wants to retain its title as the market’s best-selling BEV. It ended the period with a 4.9% share of total BEV sales.
Falling to third after a weak July was the BYD Seagull, with 197,853 sales and a 4.8% market share. Just 432 units behind in fourth was the Wuling Mini with 197,421 units. It represented 4.8% of BEV deliveries between January and June.
There was no change in fifth, with the Xiaomi SU7 totalling 180,102 units and a 4.4% market share. Sixth went to the BYD Yuan Up with 113,041 sales and 2.7% of deliveries. Seventh was the Wuling Bingo, with 104,864 deliveries and a 2.5% share.
The Xpeng M03 jumped into eighth thanks to a good performance in July. It achieved 102,055 sales and a 2.5% share of the market. This meant the Tesla Model 3 and Geely Panda Mini dropped into ninth and 10th, respectively.
The US model saw 101,770 deliveries in the seven month period, just 285 units behind the Xpeng M03. It recorded a similar 2.5% market share. Just 246 sales further back was the Panda Mini with 101,524 sales, and another 2.5% market share.
