China has done this before, damaging the European steel industry with state subsidies.
It's basically a polite mob shakedown. All that the likes of VW have to do is call up Scholz on speed dial and say "Look at all these thousands of workers and voters that depend on us selling more cars. You wouldn't want anything to happen to their jobs and families, would you? Think on how they'd vote if their livelihoods were to be impacted."
Pointing the fingers at a China for state subsidies is a bit hypocritical, but it's very effective argument at local companies getting more state subsidies.
Can you name specific numbers? I haven't found anything except for VW paying subsidies for EVs from their own pockets.
I think you got the situation reversed. VW, BMW, Mercedes are paying massive amounts of taxes, they and other large companies subsidize Germany, not the other way around.
This would be a lot more convincing if the companies you refer to were in favor of tariffs on Chinese EVs.
Who said they aren't? They also know it would be tit for that. All those German car makers who built unfathomable fortunes on sales in China would also now face increased tariffs.