Best Selling Cars – Matt's blog

BYD e6 Taxis

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PSFK reported that “Chinese carmaker BYD has announced the launch of Hong Kong’s first all-electric taxi fleet. The first batch of 45 BYD e6 taxis have been placed into service and the e6 ‘Taxi version’ and ‘Premier’ sedan are now on sale in the city”. It is hoped that the e6 models will combat pollution and help reduce the intense smog surrounding Hong Kong. The 5-passenger EV is powered by the BYD Iron-Phosphate batteries. It takes two hours to fully charge the e6 and it can then travel up to 300 km.

This announcement comes only 6 months after a similar agreement was signed to use a batch of 50 BYD e6 as taxis in London, England. In conjunction with the introduction of Hong Kong’s first pure electric taxi fleet and the e6 Premier sedans, BYD is setting up 47 chargers in 9 charging locations near car parks throughout Hong Kong as the first phase of deployment. The company plans to increase the number of charging facilities as adoption rolls out, and is aiming at a long-term fleet of no less than 5,000 e6 to roam the streets of Hong Kong!

Previous BYD e6 taxi update: UK: 50 BYD e6 to be shipped in for use as London taxis

Previous Hong Kong post: Hong Kong (China) April 2013: Toyota Hiace and Lexus RX shine

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Mercedes Citan

* See the Top 30 best-selling models by clicking on the title! *

Sales of new Light Commercial Vehicles are back into positive in the Netherlands, up 1% year-on-year in April to 4,287 registrations. This brings the year-to-date figure to 20,296 units, still down a tough 15% on 2012. The models ranking podium is identical to last month’s and the year-to-date one, wit the VW Caddy in the lead at 464 units and 10.8% share, followed by the VW Transporter with 412 sales and 9.6% and the Peugeot Partner at 287 units and 6.7%. The Ford Transit Custom is down one spot on March to #5 with 257 sales and 6% whereas the Mercedes Citan is up 3 to reach its highest ranking so far in the country at #8 thanks to 189 units sold and 4.4% share. Notice also the Opel Vivaro up 6 ranks to #6 and the Ford Transit Connect up 8 to #15.

Previous month: Netherlands LCV March 2013: Ford Transit Custom up to #4

One year ago: Netherlands LCV April 2012: Volkswagen continues to dominate

Full April 2013 Top 30 Ranking Table below.

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Skoda Rapid

* See the Top 25 best-selling models by clicking on the title! Many thanks to Skoda120 *

Thanks to Skoda120 and Auto Motor a Šport, it looks like Slovakia coverage is back to normal on BSCB, albeit a little later than usual. 5,729 new cars found a buyer in the country in March, down 11% compared to one year ago. This brings the year-to-date total to 14,432 units, down 13% on 2012. Massive event in pole position: whereas it has ranked third in neighbouring Czech Republic for the last couple of months, the Skoda Rapid brilliantly takes the lead in Slovakia with 410 sales and 7.2% share, 6 more than its little sister the Skoda Fabia. Slovakia is the second country in the world to crown the Rapid with Macedonia and the first major market to do so.

The Rapid is now #3 year-to-date in 2013 at 612 units and 4.2% below the Fabia (1,027) and Octavia II (688). Excellent performance of the Hyundai i30 up to third place this month with 196 sales and 3.4%, while the Suzuki SX4 is down to #5 in April and a still outstanding #4 year-to-date. The VW Golf VII remains extremely solid at #6, followed by the Opel Astra, Kia Rio and Kia Cee’d. Finally, notice the Peugeot 301 up to #20 year-to-date at 156 units and 1.1%.

Previous month: Slovakia 2 months 2013: Skoda Fabia leads, Suzuki SX4 #3

One year ago: Slovakia March 2012: Kia Cee’d and Rio get noticed

Full March 2013 Top 15 and Q1 2013 Top 25 Ranking Tables below.

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Toyota RAV4

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Today I give you the much awaited World roundup for April 2013. After two months of stardom for the Nissan Qashqai, we welcome new faces under the spotlight this month. What makes the headlines in April is the blockbuster performance of the new generation Toyota RAV4 across the planet and two very impressive isolated events delivered by the Nissan Leaf and Audi A3…

A little bit like Iron Man 3 unleashing its power into virtually all countries in the world in the same period, the 4th generation Toyota RAV4, after an 8 year-wait, is now making waves instantaneously in every corner of the globe: it is #2 in Taiwan with 5.1% share, #3 in Puerto Rico, up 16 spots on March to #4 in Norway, up to #6 in New Zealand, up 219% on April 2012 to #8 in Ukraine, up 117% to #10 in Russia, up 38% to #11 in Canada, up 41% to #15 in Australia, up 8 ranks to #16 in Poland and up 22% to #17 in the US… Talk about a multi-pronged attack!

Nissan Leaf

The biggest single event this month is arguably the 2nd place of the Nissan Leaf  in Norway with 3.3% share, by far the model’s best ranking anywhere in the world, and no less than its fourth consecutive record month in Norway, after ranking #4 with 2.8% in March, #5 at 2.5% in February and #9 in January. In fact, Norway is the only country in the world where the Nissan Leaf has managed to break into the monthly Top 10!

Audi A3

Another big single event is the arrival for the very first time of the Audi A3 among the Top 10 best-sellers in Europe at #9 this month, thanks to very strong showings in Germany (#4), the UK (#10) and Switzerland (#8). As an aside, nother landmark for Audi in Aprid is the Q3 breaking into any monthly Top 10 for the first time and it happened in Austria (#8) - note also that the Q3 makes its first appearance in the Chinese ranking at #107 as local production has now started.

Renault Duster

Along with the RAV4 and the Q3, another SUV making headlines worldwide is the Franco-Romanian Renault Duster. It lodges a third month (in the last 4) within the Russian Top 5 and stays within the Indian Top 10 for the 2nd consectutive month. Launched in January, it is already up to #12 in Ireland with almost 2% of the market, while on a Romanian note the Dacia Dokker is up to #5 in Romania and #3 in Bulgaria.

Great Wall Voleex C10

Quick update on the most successful Chinese models overseas: the Great Wall Voleex C10 is up to a best-ever #2 in Bulgaria, the Geely CK maintains itself at #2 year-to-date in Ukraine, the Chery MVM315 (aka Fulwin 2) is up to #4 in Iran and the DongFeng S30 celebrates its 5th consecutive month within the Venezuelan Top 5.

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Here is the full last 12 months’ worth of World roundups:

World March 2013 Roundup: Don’t take this the wrong way, but…

World February 2013 Roundup: Nissan Qashqai pumps up the jam

World January 2013 Roundup: Low-cost range brings Renault back

World Full Year 2012 Roundup: Last Year’s Top 5 highlights

World December 2012 Roundup: Has the Chinese invasion started?

World November 2012 Roundup: When Hyundai cracked Brazil

World October 2012 Roundup: China, Japan and Austria in focus

World September 2012 Roundup: Ford Focus shines in China

World August 2012 Roundup: Subaru XV topples almighty Golf in Switzerland

World July 2012 Roundup: Geely CK writes history in Ukraine

World June 2012 Roundup: Hyundai Santa Fe and Ford Focus shine

World May 2012 Roundup: GM and Toyota Etios make headlines

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Strong full-sized pickup sales are driving the US market to almost 10% growth in 2013.

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Both LMC Automotive/J.D. Power and TrueCar.com predict May US auto sales will rebound from an April slowdown to exceed 1.4 million units, a 9% year-on-year increase. Both companies agree the seasonally adjusted annual selling rate (SAAR) should be 15.2 million. In April the SAAR was 14.9 million, ending five straight months above the 15 million mark which worried analysts because because the previous 3 years had strong first quarters followed by weak springs, said Jeff Schuster, LMC forecasting boss.

As a comparison the SAAR was just 13.9 million one year ago in May 2012.

“This is the time of year when the automotive industry holds its collective breath [but] the current pace suggests full steam ahead for the second half of 2013,” Schuster said. “Economic and market headwinds have been minimized while demand continues to build momentum.” On top of these good news, TrueCar said average incentives are falling which means more profits for car manufacturers.

Previous month: USA April 2013: Hyundai Elantra in Top 10

One year ago: USA May 2012: Chevrolet Malibu hits highest volume in 10 years

Full article below.

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Dacia Logan

* See the Top 50 All-brands ranking by clicking on the title! *

Flying in the face of the overall depressed trend in Europe, new car sales in Belgium are up an impressive 10% year-on-year in April to 53,036 registrations, bringing the year-to-date total to 202,196 units. Very stable brands podium ranking, identical to both the March and year-to-date ones: Volkswagen leads the way, up 12% to 5,847 sales and 11% share, followed by Renault up 14% to 5,567 units and 10.5% and Peugeot up a more timid 6% to 4,325 sales and 8.2%.

Audi brilliantly gains 3 spots on March to land in 4th position at 6.7% share, while Mercedes is up 40% year-on-year to #9 and 5.1% share. Other big gainers this month include Toyota up 26% to #10, Hyundai up 40% to #12, Dacia up a huge 73% to #13, Kia up 64% to #16, Nissan up 35% to #17 and Honda up 61% to #23.

Previous post: Belgium March 2013: Renault Clio and BMW 3 Series impress

Previous month: Belgium March 2013: Volkswagen and Renault back in charge

Previous year: Belgium Full Year 2012: VW Golf and Renault Megane on top

Full April 2013 Top 50 brands Ranking Table below.

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BMW 3 Series GT

* See the Top 32 All-brands ranking by clicking on the title! *

At just -4% year-on-year to 8,032 registrations in April, Portuguese new car sales confirm they may finally have bottomed out, as the 2013 year-to-date remains in positive at +1% and 32,179 units. Is this finally the end of the tunnel for the car market in Portugal, after  falling by 31% in 2011 and by a further 38% in 2012 to drop below 100,000 annual units for the first time since 1985? The next few months will tell us. Note that if Light Commercial Vehicles are added, the market is down 1% to 36,893 registrations year-to-date. In second place in 2012 and up to last month, Volkswagen reclaims the Portuguese brands ranking pole position both in April thanks to 813 sales and 10.1% and year-to-date at 3,226 units and 10%. Renault ranks #2 both times with 767 sales and 9.5% (-27%) and 3,207 and 10% (-6%).

Exceptional performance of BMW, managing to climb onto this month’s podium at 710 units and a huge 8.8% share, up 24% year-on-year, however most of is potentially fleet sales. BMW is up 21% year-to-date but still #4 like in 2012. Mercedes also shines: up 22% in April and 30% year-to-date to rank 5th each time. Notice also Nissan up 17%, Seat up 33%, Honda up 16%, Alfa Romeo up 64% and Dacia up 52%.

Previous post: Portugal March 2013: Renault Clio #1, Mercedes A-Class #9!

Previous month: Portugal March 2013: Renault and Volkswagen dominate

One year ago: Portugal April 2012: Peugeot 208 lands at world-best 4th place!

Full April 2013 Top 32 brands Ranking Table below.

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Honda Accord

* See the Top 15 best-selling models by clicking on the title! *

California is the largest new car market in the USA and over the first Quarter of 2013 it is up a massive 13% year-on-year to 403,658 registrations, to be compared with +7% in the USA overall. Toyota doesn’t separate sales of different Prius models so as a result the Prius family is once again the best-selling ‘model’ in the State with 15,661 sales and 3.9% share. However the Honda Accord can be considered the most popular unique model here thanks to 15,369 units sold and 3.8% share, passing the Toyota Camry (now #5) and Honda Civic (now #3) that were both above it both over the Full Year 2012 and Q4 2012.

Toyota Corolla

The Toyota Corolla also registers a very impressive gain, up to #4 with 14,188 sales and 3.5% vs. 2.2% over Q4. This means the 5 most popular cars in California over the period are all Japanese. In fact, Japanese brands represent 48% of the Californian car market vs. 37% in the US as a whole, while US brands account for 28% of sales vs. 45% and European marques are at 16% vs. 9%… The Ford F-Series remains the best-selling domestic model, up one spot on 2012 to #6 at 8,806 units and 2.2%.

Tesla Model S

In fact Ford brings two additional models in the Californian Top 15 this year: the Focus is up to #10 with 6,637 sales and the Fusion is up to #12 at 6,507 units. With the Chevrolet Silverado at #14 this makes 4 US models in the Top 15 vs. just two last year. Would American brands be starting to reclaim Los Angeles streets? Notice also the Nissan Altima up to #7 and the Tesla Model S selling 2,406 units or roughly half of all its total US sales over the period!

Previous post: California (USA) Full Year 2012: Toyota Prius new leader

Previous Quarter: California (USA) Q4 2012: BMW 3 Series and Mercedes E-Class up

Full Q1 2013 Top 15 Ranking Table below.

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Ford Explorer

* See the Top 270 best-selling models by clicking on the title! *

Check out Mid West Title Loans here!

Now that we have gone through the Top 258 All-models ranking for April, as usual let’s explore the year-to-date ranking in more detail to extract longer-term trends. Overall the US market is up a very robust 7% year-on-year to 4,974,000 registrations, and the Top 2 best-sellers are doing better and better as the year advances: the Ford F-Series is up 19% over the period to 227,873 sales while the Chevrolet Silverado is up an even more impressive 23% to 156,044 units. For the Toyota Camry it’s a different story: sales are down 3% to 132,540 units but it has managed to stave off the Honda Accord for now (121,965, +26%) to keep the title of most popular Passenger Car.

Lexus ES sales are up 90% in the US over the period…

You can check out great deals on Volkswagen Exhaust System Parts here.

In fact, the Camry is only one of 3 models to lose ground year-on-year in the Top 10 with the Nissan Altima and Honda Civic, both at -3%. The Ford Fusion (+25%) and Escape (+31%) are still at record levels while the Hyundai Elantra is not faring too badly either at +29%, helped by a Top 10 spot in April. The Dodge Avenger is up 30% to #32 but the title of best progression in the Top 50 goes to the Ford Explorer, up 34% to #18 with 62,853 sales.

The Acura RDX is up 171%

As it’s been the case each month this year so far, the Dodge Dart is the best performing all-new model, now ranking #50 with 31,064 sales, but I have said this and I will say it again: this does not make it a success, as Fiat-Chrysler was banking on it to shake the ranking a little more… There are still only two newcomers in the Top 100 but the Subaru XV Crosstrek has now improved to #89 and the Ford C-Max is not far at all anymore, in fact ranking #101. It is followed by the Cadillac ATS at #106, Chevrolet Spark at #108, Cadillac XTS at #122 and Buick Encore at #130.

US Toyota Avalon sales are up 84% so far in 2013…

Notice also the Nissan Pathfinder up 181% to #55, the Mazda CX-5 up 221% to #65, Toyota Avalon up 84% to #66, Lexus ES up 90% to #70, Buick Verano up 85% to #90, VW Beetle up 103% to #97, Acura RDX up 171% to #102, the Tesla Model S estimated to rank #142, Nissan Leaf up 160% to #162 and the Hyundai Azera up 270% to #172.

Previous post: USA April 2013: Hyundai Elantra in Top 10

Previous month: USA 3 months 2013: Ford Fusion and Escape at record levels

One year ago: USA April 2012: Toyota Prius up to record 5th place

Full 4 months 2013 Top 270 Ranking Table below.

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Chery QQ in Yangon, Myanmar

* See the Full photo album by clicking on the title! Many thanks to Ryusuke *

Information about the Myanmar new car market is slowly but surely trickling down, and now thanks to the hard work of Ryusuke I can share with you a photo album of the streets of the capital Yangon. As detailed in one of my previous Myanmar updates, with the government now selling import licenses to vehicle owners that turn over their junkers for smelting, new cars are now starting to be more frequent in the streets.

Toyota Carina in Yangon, Myanmar

And Ryusuke’s photos confirm the Chery QQ is now a very common sights in Yangon, mainly as a taxi. As you know if you are a regular reader of BestSellingCarsBlog, QQ owners can easily rent the cars for K15,000 (US$17) a day to taxi drivers… An interesting motivation to want to own a car!

Street scene in Yangon, Myanmar

Now there are still many well travelled Toyota Corolla, Camry and Probox station wagons in the streets. But as far as new cars are concerned, we can start to notice the Toyota Yaris, Honda Jazz, Toyota Alphard and Honda Civic finding their way, as well as the Kia Bongo pick-up…

Previous Myanmar posts:

Myanmar: One of the Top 10 ‘Emerging engines of growth’

Myanmar 2012: Chery QQ3 the new favourite

Myanmar: More information needed.

Full photo album below.

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