In 2024, Serbia achieved its best result in new car sales over the past five years, surpassing even the pre-pandemic period. Nevertheless, according to data from the Serbian Association of Vehicle and Parts Importers, the market is still dominated by used cars, which account for as much as 83 percent of total sales.
Regarding fuel type, petrol engines had the largest share among new cars sold in 2024, accounting for 46 percent, while hybrids, in all their variants, made up 32 percent of the market. Diesel vehicles comprised 19 percent, with the remaining three percent divided among alternative fuels – two percent for LPG and similar drives, and just one percent for electric vehicles.
“The share of fully electric vehicles stands at around one percent, meaning precisely 283 new passenger cars and 142 new light commercial vehicles were sold. Regarding hybrids, electrified vehicles also include plug-in hybrids, with over 2,000 units sold. Observing trends from 2019 to the present, sales have been consistently growing, but we are still significantly behind compared to the EU market, where fully electric vehicles account for 13.6 percent of total sales,” said Boris Ćorović, Secretary General of the Serbian Association of Vehicle and Parts Importers.
In contrast, around 135,000 used passenger vehicles were imported into Serbia in 2024, with as many as 58,000 having Euro 3 and Euro 4 engines (produced between 2001 and 2010). This means that new vehicles comprised only 17 percent of total sales, while used vehicles accounted for the remaining 83 percent.
As for used fully electric vehicles, 964 were imported into Serbia in 2024, significantly exceeding the number of new electric cars sold. These figures clearly show that Serbian citizens still predominantly rely on used vehicles, often with older emissions standards. From an environmental perspective, it is concerning that imports are still led by older vehicles, which are among the biggest polluters, while the number of new cars remains considerably lower.
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Electric Vehicles and Infrastructure Challenges
One of the main reasons for the low share of electric vehicles, according to Ćorović, is the insufficient number of charging stations. Serbia currently has around 200 public chargers, which amounts to just three chargers per 100,000 inhabitants, while Bulgaria has 24 and Croatia 32 chargers per the same number of residents.
“The so-called ecosystem for electric vehicles is underdeveloped. A key segment of this ecosystem is the network of public chargers. Still, it also includes legal regulations, non-financial incentives, the resolution of battery recycling issues, and technical details such as introducing special registration plates and recording data in vehicle documents,” Ćorović explains.
He adds that the arrival of new brands from Asia onto the Serbian market, the start of production of Fiat’s electric model in Kragujevac, and the gradual decline in electric vehicle prices will all contribute to greater accessibility in the coming years.
Prepared by Jasna Dragojević
Read the story in the new issue of the Energy portal Magazine SUSTAINABLE MOBILITY
