Electric cars are about to make a breakthrough in Germany. With Polestar, the VDIK importers association now has for the first time a pure electrical manufacturer as a member.
The importance of electric cars is no longer only growing in everyday traffic. The changes in drives are also reflected in associations and interest groups from the automotive industry. The Association of International Motor Vehicle Manufacturers (VDIK) is now accepting the first member that only produces electric vehicles: Polestar from Sweden will in future be one of the member companies of the Importers Association.
The offer of low-emission cars has long been a strength of international manufacturers, said VDIK President Reinhard Zirpel. “With Polestar as another member, our association underlines this profile again,” he emphasized. The VDIK will continue to work for “optimal framework conditions for low-emission mobility”.
The international manufacturers in Germany are serious competitors for domestic suppliers such as Volkswagen, Daimler and BMW The 37 member companies of the VDIK have a market share of almost 40 percent in Germany. Last year, manufacturers from abroad sold around 1.4 million cars on the German market. There were also around 120,000 commercial vehicles.
Foreign manufacturers of electric vehicles were sometimes faster than German suppliers. Renault’s Zoe and Nissan’s Leaf have been standard in the industry for years. Volkswagen unveiled the ID.3 only in a few weeks the first model of its new generation of electric vehicles on the market.
Polestar is the pure electrical deposit of the Swedish car manufacturer Volvo, which in turn belongs to the Chinese Geely group. The Scandinavians have decided to establish a completely new electrical brand with Polestar. Volvo believes that this will give them good opportunities in the growing market.
No interest from Tesla
“With our membership in the VDIK, we are underlining that we will gain a foothold in Germany with Polestar and that we will promote electromobility together,” said Alexander Lutz, Managing Director of Polestar in Germany. The Federal Republic is already an important market for new electric models. And the importance will increase in the near future – driven by stricter emissions requirements from the EU and additional funding from the federal government.
The VDIK is satisfied that Polestar is the first pure manufacturer of electric cars to be a member company. There may be more electronics suppliers to come in the next few years.
However, the association no longer has high hopes that even the most prominent provider among the EV manufacturers could dock with the VDIK: Tesla. The US manufacturer has so far not been interested in membership in the association and will not do so in the foreseeable future.
However, Tesla may be interested in joining the Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) from next year. Then production of the new Model Y SUV should begin in the new Tesla plant in Brandenburg, not far from the city limits of Berlin.
A formal requirement for admission to the VDA is production in Germany. For example, Opel and Ford are also member companies of the German manufacturers’ association, even though the headquarters of both car manufacturers are based abroad.
However, membership in the VDA is not mandatory. Since Tesla, as a newcomer to the automotive industry, is taking unconventional paths anyway, the US manufacturer may also forego the support of the VDA. “Tesla also gets enough hearing from government and other public bodies,” says an industry insider.
Great news to see also traditional Germany progressing with the help of Polestar! This is the way forward.