Norway 1972-1973: Volvo 140, Beetle and Ford Taunus on podium
Volvo 144
* See the Top 10 best-selling models by clicking on the title! Many thanks to Rene *
The Norwegian car market “consolidates” over the period: down 8% in 1972 to 74,680 and back up 19% in 1973 to 88,989 units. The Volvo 140 Series confirms its newly acquired leadership by reaching what would remain its highest ever year-end share in the country in ’72 at 10.7% thanks to 7,973 sales and maintains itself at a solid 9% in ’73 at 7,990 units.
Ford Taunus
The Top 4 stays unchanged over the period with the VW Beetle at #2 and 7.4% share in ’72, 7.1% in ’73 and the Ford Taunus at #3 and 5.3% in ’72 and 6.4% in ’73. The Opel Rekord/Caravan is #4 both years at 4.6% and 4.3% share. We welcome the Opel Ascona is the Top 10 at #6 both years.
Mazda 616
Japan passes a new benchmark in Norway 1973: for the first time in the history of the country a Japanese model manages to rank within the overall Top 5 at year-end and it’s the Mazda 616/1600/1800 ranking 5th with 3,164 sales and 3.6% share, up 34% on 1972. By this time it is the only Japenese model left in the Top 10 whereas there were 3 in 1970, 71 and 72.
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Full Year 1972 and 1973 Top 10 Ranking Tables below.
Norway Full Year 1972:
| Pos | Model | 1972 | % | /71 | 1971 | % | Pos |
| 1 | Volvo 140 Series | 7,973 | 10.7% | 4% | 7,637 | 9.4% | 1 |
| 2 | VW Beetle | 5,537 | 7.4% | -4% | 5,768 | 7.1% | 2 |
| 3 | Ford Taunus | 3,978 | 5.3% | -21% | 5,017 | 6.2% | 3 |
| 4 | Opel Rekord/Caravan | 3,431 | 4.6% | -4% | 3,590 | 4.4% | 5 |
| 5 | Opel Kadett | 3,148 | 4.2% | -32% | 4,626 | 5.7% | 4 |
| 6 | Opel Ascona | 2,659 | 3.6% | new | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| 7 | Mazda 1500/1600/1800 | 2,355 | 3.2% | -33% | 3,511 | 4.3% | 6 |
| 8 | Ford Escort | 1,944 | 2.6% | -26% | 2,633 | 3.2% | 8 |
| 9 | Mazda 1200/1300 | 1,670 | 2.2% | -32% | 2,448 | 3.0% | 9 |
| 10 | Datsun 1300/1600/1800 | 1,663 | 2.2% | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
Norway Full Year 1973:
| Pos | Model | 1973 | % | /72 | 1972 | % | Pos |
| 1 | Volvo 140 Series | 7,990 | 9.0% | 0% | 7,973 | 10.7% | 1 |
| 2 | VW Beetle | 6,360 | 7.1% | 15% | 5,537 | 7.4% | 2 |
| 3 | Ford Taunus | 5,654 | 6.4% | 42% | 3,978 | 5.3% | 3 |
| 4 | Opel Rekord/Caravan | 3,828 | 4.3% | 12% | 3,431 | 4.6% | 4 |
| 5 | Mazda 616/1600/1800 | 3,164 | 3.6% | 34% | 2,355 | 3.2% | 7 |
| 6 | Opel Ascona | 2,885 | 3.2% | 8% | 2,659 | 3.6% | 6 |
| 7 | Opel Kadett | 2,788 | 3.1% | -11% | 3,148 | 4.2% | 5 |
| 8 | Ford Consul | 2,679 | 3.0% | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| 9 | Morris Marina | 2,621 | 2.9% | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| 10 | Ford Escort | 2,228 | 2.5% | 15% | 1,944 | 2.6% | 8 |
Source: www.bilnorge.no, many thanks to Rene for sharing the data!
