Tesla registered 389 new cars in Romania in October 2026, more than any other electric brand, according to Profit.ro's analysis of official registration data from the DGPCI, Romania's vehicle registration authority. That is 50% more than the 259 of October 2025, which Autocritica called Tesla's best month of that year. It is also a sharp turn from September, when Tesla registered 19 cars and BYD took the lead in Romania's electric brand ranking for the year by 20 units.
October puts Tesla back in front for 2026. Profit.ro counts almost 2,000 new Teslas registered since January, up 118%, against 1,754 electric cars for BYD.
The October numbers
| Romania, October 2026 | Figure | Comparison |
|---|---|---|
| New cars, all powertrains | 11,927 | -6% |
| Battery-electric cars | 1,493 | +46% |
| Battery-electric share | 12.3% | 7.9% a year earlier |
| Petrol cars | 3,452 | 28.5% share |
| Diesel cars | 528 | 4.4% share |
| Battery-electric cars, January to October | 9,384 | +45.6% |
The market total and the electric count are the preliminary figures published on 2 November by APIA, the importers' and manufacturers' association (News.ro, DC Business). The shares and the ten-month electric total are Profit.ro's, which counts 1,495 electric cars for the month. Over ten months the market is down 10%, while the electric share has risen 3.3 points to 8.6%.
Where Tesla stands
| Electric models, October 2026 | Units | Change | Share of electric cars |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tesla Model 3 | 263 | +57.5% | 17.6% |
| Ford Puma Gen-E | 227 | +116.2% | 15.2% |
| MG4 Urban | 131 | new | 8.8% |
| Tesla Model Y | 126 | +37.0% | 8.4% |
| Mazda 6e | 70 | +1,650% | 4.7% |
| BYD Dolphin Surf | 61 | +103.3% | 4.1% |
The Model 3 was the month's best-selling electric car, and the two Teslas account for all 389 of the brand's registrations. Ford was the second electric brand on 278 (+44%), ahead of BYD on 154 and MG on 147. Renault, Hyundai and Volkswagen registered fewer electric cars than a year earlier, and the Renault 5 (37, -30.2%) and Ford Explorer (31, -47.5%) both fell.
Over ten months, Profit.ro puts the Model Y and the Model 3 at about 1,000 registrations each, ahead of the Dolphin Surf on 747 and the Puma on 700. That fits APIA's nine-month table, which had the Model Y on 886 and the Model 3 on 676 before October's cars were added.
BYD is still the bigger brand overall
Counting plug-in hybrids, BYD remains far larger in Romania. It was fourth among all brands in October with 796 cars, behind Dacia (2,814), Toyota (1,447) and Škoda (810), according to APIA's top ten as reported by Playtech. Its Seal U DM-i plug-in hybrid was the ninth best-selling car of the month on 270. Tesla is not in the brand top ten, which ends with Mercedes-Benz on 417.
Among electric cars, though, the Chinese brands' share fell to 24.4% in October, Profit.ro says. Tesla and Ford, the two American brands, took 667 of the month's electric registrations between them, about 45%.
What it means
Tesla's Romanian registrations arrive in batches, as the swing from 19 cars in September to 389 in October shows, so one month says less than the running total. Profit.ro attributes the electric share's rise to higher fuel prices and a wider choice of affordable electric cars, at a time when Romania's Rabla scrappage programme has had limited funds. APIA has yet to publish its detailed October breakdown by powertrain and brand.