"They signed up for impotence": will premium European car brands leave the Russian Federation

The headquarters of automakers decided to impose additional restrictions on the supply of their cars to the Russian Federation through third countries. This may lead to an increase in prices for such cars, but European automakers are not able to completely ban their import into our country, experts are sure. Moreover, given the difficult situation in the EU automotive industry and the general decline in sales of cars from the Old World on world markets, European car brands are even interested in continuing to supply their models to Russia, experts say. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.

Chinese Warning

BMW headquarters has sent an order to its division in China demanding "categorically to prevent any potential export of cars to Russia," according to Reuters. Mercedes-Benz has taken similar measures. At the same time, it is difficult to monitor compliance with these regulations by partners and investigate violations of crane restrictions, European automakers admit.

Photo: TASS/Yuri Smithyuk

The restrictions are being introduced against the background of a significant increase in sales of premium models of European brands in our country. Last year, according to Sergey Tselikov, CEO of the Autostat analytical agency, almost 18,000 new BMW cars were imported to Russia, which is 34% more than the results of 2024. Deliveries of new Mercedes also increased by almost a third, to 10.2 thousand units. Moreover, as previously reported by Izvestia, for some premium European models, the results of last year even exceeded the figures of the "pre-license" 2021, when these machines were officially delivered to the Russian market.

Michurin never dreamed: sales of hybrid cars in the Russian Federation have increased dramatically

Domestic brands of "green" cars become market leaders

For the report

The restrictions and prohibitions issued by European automakers to their partners from China and other countries are nothing more than loud statements, experts interviewed by Izvestia believe. To a greater extent, they are related to the desire of car companies to "save face" in front of officials from the European Commission and their own shareholders, they believe.

According to Irina Frank, CEO of Frank Auto, these statements really sound threatening. And BMW may really put pressure on Chinese dealers, and Mercedes-Benz may complicate contracts, she believes. However, these statements say "no" not to the supplies themselves, but to their publicity. European manufacturers are not really able to block the flow of cars in the Russian Federation, the expert is sure.

— It is almost impossible to track the final chain without outside help — this is recognized by the concerns themselves. There is only one way to ensure that no new European cars enter Russia: physically block the borders at the exit from China and all the EAEU countries. Obviously, no one will do that. If we look at these statements as a market reality, it becomes obvious that the German car industry has actually confessed its own impotence," Irina Frank told Izvestia.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Sergey Lantyukhov

The reaction of European automakers to the growth in sales of their cars in Russia is an attempt to show the European Commission that they are doing their best to counteract the unofficial supply of cars to our market, said Anton Shaparin, Vice President of the National Automobile Union.

"All these statements are more like a progress report to the European Commission: they say we are trying to follow your instructions as best we can, but unfortunately we cannot do anything about the sales of our cars in Russia," he believes.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Sergey Lantyukhov

Given the difficult situation in the German car industry and not the most outstanding sales results in global markets (-1.4% for BMW and -9% for Mercedes-Benz), it is even beneficial for these companies to have their cars sold in Russia, says Maxim Kadakov, editor-in-chief of Za Rulem magazine.

— The Germans will continue to protest loudly so that everyone can see how unhappy they are with the current situation. But at the same time, they will secretly rejoice that their cars are still being bought in Russia. It is clear that 18 thousand cars sold in our country, against more than 2 million sold worldwide, is a drop in the bucket for BMW. Nevertheless, the Russian result is twice as high as the sales results, for example, in Romania, where about 8 thousand cars of this brand were purchased last year," said the editor—in-chief of Za Rulem.

I didn't take it for free: legendary motorcycles will return to the Russian market

Indian and two-stroke Czech Jawas will arrive in Russia

The consequences cannot be avoided

The tightening of control over their partners by European automakers will not radically change the situation with the supply of premium cars to Russia, says Igor Morzharetto, partner at the Autostat analytical agency. However, there will still be certain consequences, he believes.

— Most likely, it will be more difficult to purchase a relatively large batch of cars from Chinese dealers at once for their subsequent shipment to our country — you will have to purchase one or two cars each. In addition, to "cover their tracks", buyers will have to resort to the help of intermediaries. All this will eventually affect the total cost of cars," he told Izvestia.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Sergey Lantyukhov

Pressure on retailers in China will certainly play a role, Irina Frank notes. Chinese dealers will start to be cautious, the cost of the purchased car will increase by the amount of the commission of intermediaries and possible risks, she explains.

— The market of premium European models will finally go into pre-order: the customer pays, waits, receives. There will be almost no inventory left. Such cars will cost more, they will have to wait longer, and the choice will be limited to the most popular positions. But they won't leave our market completely," Irina Frank believes.