Tesla claimed the No. 1 spot in South Korea's imported car market for the first time in the first quarter of this year. Aggressive price cuts and expanding electric vehicle (EV) demand have combined to shake the established order long dominated by German premium brands such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz.
Tesla sold a total of 20,964 vehicles in the first quarter, capturing a 25.53% market share to rank first among imported car brands, according to data from the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association (KAIDA) released Monday. Sales surged more than fourfold from the same period a year earlier. It marks Tesla's first quarterly No. 1 finish since entering the Korean market in 2017.
BMW followed in second place with 19,368 units (23.58%), while Mercedes-Benz ranked third with 15,862 units (19.32%). Both brands posted modest year-on-year growth but fell far short of Tesla's steep upward trajectory. The quarterly result breaks a longstanding pattern in which BMW and Mercedes-Benz alternated at the top of the imported car market. On a full-year basis in 2024, BMW led with 77,127 units, followed by Mercedes-Benz with 68,467 and Tesla with 59,916.
Tesla's surge is largely attributed to its pricing strategy. In January, the company cut the price of the Model 3 Standard RWD to 41.99 million won. After government subsidies, the effective purchase price dropped into the 30 million won range (approximately $22,000). As a result, sales that stood at just 1,966 units in January jumped to 7,868 in February and 11,130 in March, reshaping the competitive landscape.
Prolonged high oil prices stemming from the U.S.-Iran conflict, government encouragement of alternate-day and one-in-five driving restrictions, and the early confirmation of EV subsidies also fueled rising EV demand. Imported EV sales reached 31,498 units in the first quarter, more than tripling from 10,050 in the year-ago period. China's BYD and Sweden's Polestar also posted explosive growth, with sales increasing roughly 400-fold and twofold, respectively.
