Israel Full Year 2015: Kia most popular brand, Picanto reclaims lead

The Kia Picanto reclaims the Israeli top spot in 2015. Picture cartube.co.il

* See the Top 45 All-brands and Top 310 All-models by clicking on the title *

Thanks to www.cartube.co.il

It’s time for the Full Year 2015 Reports, and the first cab off the rank is Israel, a market up a solid 6% year-on-year in 2015 to 254.748 registrations. Thanks to sales up a stunning 28%, Korean manufacturer Kia overtakes sister brand Hyundai (-0.4%) to lead the Israeli carmaker ranking at 13.2% share vs. 12.3% for Hyundai and 11.5% for Toyota (+7%). Mitsubishi (+28%) outpaces both Skoda (+13%) and Suzuki (-11%) to rank 6th overall. Nissan is up 21% to #8, Volkswagen is up 3 spots to break into the Top 10 despite sales up “just” 4%, and Seat (+22%), Subaru (+76%) and Peugeot (+42%) all post spectacular gains. At the other end of the scale, Chevrolet (-42%) and Ford (-75%) crumble down. Dacia spends its first full year in the Israeli market at a cool #22 and 1% share. Luxury German manufacturers Audi (+30%), Mercedes (+29%) and BMW (+40%) all improve significantly faster than the market.

Leader in 2012, the Ford Focus sold just three units in Israel in 2015…

As we detailed in the August 2015 post, the Israeli new car market is particularly influenced by fleet sales that are estimated to account for roughly 50% of the entire market, this ratio climbing to 60-70% in the C segment. The arrival of the new generation nameplate can mean its direct competitors see their sales brake to an almost complete halt as fleet orders ruthlessly shift to the new offer. It is this unique market behaviour – and not a sudden change of taste by private buyers – that explains the steep declines of such manufacturers as Chevrolet – handicapped by the Cruze (-36%), Trax (-36%), Spark (-59%) and Sonic (-61%) – and Ford which sees the Focus go from 4.855 sales in 2014 to just three in 2015 in the absence of new generation launch.

The new model pushes the Suzuki SX4 up 83%. Picture cartube.co.il

After conceding to the Toyota Corolla in 2014, the Kia Picanto reclaims the Israeli models lead it held back in 2013 to make it two wins in the past three years, thanks to sales up 20% to 12.699 vs. -11% and 11.129 for the Corolla. The Sportage is the 2nd Kia on the podium, improving its sales 3-fold on 2014 to gain 16 spots and knock the Mazda3 down to #4. Other impressive gainers in the Top 20 include the Suzuki SX4 (+83%), Mitsubishi Outlander and Attrage (both at +30%), Toyota Yaris (+53%) and Subaru Impreza (+83%). The Nissan Almera is the only all-new model for 2015 to break into the annual Top 50 at #46.

Previous month: Israel November 2015: Kia Picanto and Sportage on top

Previous year: Israel Full Year 2014: Toyota Corolla takes the lead

Two years ago: Israel Full Year 2013: Kia Picanto best-seller for the first time

Full Year 2015 Top 45 All-brands and Top 310 All-models vs. Full Year 2014 figures below.

Full December 2015 Top 40 All-brands and Top 195 All-models below.