Market Remains in Reverse in February - Plug-in Hybrids in Demand Among Electrified Drives

The market for new passenger cars in Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein remains in reverse in February 2026. With a decrease of 3.2 percent compared to the same month last year, the negative trend continues. After two months, the cumulative decline is 4.1 percent. Although declining figures for passenger cars are a typical counter-reaction to year-end business in the early weeks of the year, CO2 overregulation further exacerbates this market distortion.

Different dynamics in drives: Classic combustion engines continue to lose significance. For instance, fewer than 1,000 vehicles with diesel engines were newly registered in February, representing a decline of 26.8 percent compared to the same month last year. Electrified drives show a differentiated picture. While full and mild hybrids, which make up the largest share of new registrations, stagnated at 6,009 new registrations, purely electric drives (BEV) fell by 8.5 percent to 3,113 units. Only plug-in hybrids (PHEV) recorded a significant increase of 25.1 percent to 1,829 new registrations. Consequently, twice as many plug-in hybrids as diesel vehicles were registered in February.

Thomas Rücker, Director at auto-schweiz says: "The sharp decline in diesel vehicles highlights the structural change in the market. Overall, the renewal of the vehicle fleet remains central to further reducing CO2 emissions and increasing road safety."

Detailed figures by brand are available at www.auto.swiss. The evaluations by auto-schweiz are based on federal surveys, and the data may be preliminary and not yet final.

Ready for the start of the racing season: Did you know that from the 2026 Formula 1 season, hybrid engines will exclusively run on CO2-neutral synthetic fuel? With this strong signal for reduced emissions in motorsport, not only is the technical feasibility being explored, but this fuel is also being tested under extreme conditions for resilience. For the first time, it is proven that, even under high temperature stress and maximum pressure conditions, top performances can be achieved with synthetic fuel. Currently, synthetic fuels are still very expensive. However, with their help, the existing vehicle fleet could also contribute to the climate goals.

Press Contact: Frank Keidel, Media Spokesperson
T 076 399 69 06
frank.keidel@auto.swiss

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