Nio‘s head of German operations warned on Tuesday that new electric vehicle brands are failing in the country by prioritizing premium positioning over operational fundamentals such as service coverage, residual value stability, and sales management.
The LinkedIn post comes weeks after the Chinese EV maker recorded its worst German sales month since entering the market with only one vehicle registered.
David Sultzer joined Nio in September 2023 as regional manager for eastern Germany. He was promoted to general manager for the country in June 2024, replacing Marius Hayler, who departed for Polestar.
The German chief wrote that too many new brands launch with strong products but then fail on what he called the operational basics: realistic target audiences, sales management, residual value stability and service operations.
“A good EV is not enough in Germany. Those who believe that learn the hard way,” Sultzer wrote. “Germany is not a market for ‘we’ll stabilize later.'”
Three Recurring Failures
Sultzer outlined three challenges he said he has observed repeatedly over years of working with new automotive brands in the German market.
He did not name Nio directly.
The first is confusing presence with sales.
Stores and partners are infrastructure, not revenue — and when lead quality, test drive capacity and close rates are not rigorously managed, volume ends up coming through discounts.
“That damages positioning early on,” Sultzer wrote.
The second is misunderstanding what premium means in Germany.
In this market, Sultzer argued, premium is not a price tag — it is residual value stability, competitive leasing rates and reliable service.
When remarketing processes, leasing and service packages are missing, when parts availability takes too long and service coverage is too thin, leasing customers, fleet operators and small businesses turn away.
“Premium becomes just a price label without added value,” the executive wrote.
The third is service. If workshop availability, parts supply, turnaround times and logistics are not in place from launch, marketing spending is wasted.
“Whoever only gets service coverage, IT and logistics in order after the start doesn’t scale revenue — they scale internal frustration and customer dissatisfaction,” Sultzer wrote.
As a conclusion, the executive named the three most important points to consider in Europe’s largest automotive market.
“In Germany, service, residual value and processes are part of the product and must be seen as a complete package. If any one of them is missing, trust collapses faster than it can be rebuilt.”
A Mirror of Nio’s Own Position
Sultzer framed his post as general industry commentary, but the parallels to Nio‘s German experience are difficult to miss.
The company registered just one vehicle in Germany in January, matching January 2023 — when the brand had only just entered Europe’s largest auto market — for its weakest month in three years.
February figures from the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) are expected on Friday.
Nio operates four flagship showrooms in Germany, in Berlin, Frankfurt, Dusseldorf and Hamburg — the kind of high-profile retail presence Sultzer described as infrastructure that does not automatically generate sales.
Every vehicle the company currently offers in the country is a 2023 or 2024 model year, as EV reported on Tuesday as one of the reasons for new multi-year lows the brand is registering in its established European markets.
The lineup was refreshed in China during the first half of 2025, but the updated versions have not yet reached European showrooms.
The cars being sold are unsold inventory the company has been unable to clear.
On pricing and residual value — the second pillar Sultzer flagged — Nio has turned to 0% financing on short-term registered vehicles and a six-month “Try & Buy” trial for the ET7 executive sedan to stimulate demand. T
The Try & Buy program, reported by EV on February 20, allows customers to drive the ET7 for six months with a one-time payment of €4,500 ($5,300), with the full amount credited toward the purchase price if they choose to buy.
The brand’s entry-level SUV, the EL6, starts at €53,500 ($63,200) in Germany. The ET5 sedan is available only through inventory, with the cheapest unit listed at €50,730 ($59,900) as of Wednesday.
The ET5 Touring station wagon and the larger EL8 SUV round out the configurator.
The 0% financing offers are listed on Nio’s German promotions page and valid until March 31.
A Growing Market
The German EV market expanded in January.
Overall passenger vehicle registrations declined 6.6% year over year to 193,981 units, but electric vehicle sales rose 23.4%, with 42,692 BEVs registered.
The EV market share climbed to 22.0% from 19.1% in December.
Acknowledging the Problem
Sultzer’s post follows an interview by Mark Zhou, Nio‘s Executive Vice President and Chairman of the Product Committee, who said the company made “fundamental miscalculations” when it expanded from Norway into the broader EU in 2022.
CEO William Li gave a similar assessment at Auto Shanghai in April 2025.
“We underestimated the difficulty of expanding sales and service networks in Europe,” Li said. “We believe that Europe requires a particularly long-term strategy and patience.”
Nio also faces a 20.7% countervailing duty on top of the EU’s standard 10% import tariff since October 2024, bringing total levies on its vehicles to 30.7%.
