Italy First Half 2017: Fiat Tipo lands in 3rd place, teases Ypsilon for #2

The Fiat Tipo ranks third at home so far in 2017. Picture quattroruote.it

* See the Top 44 brands and Top 50 models by clicking on the title *

The Italian new car market signs a seventh consecutive positive half-year at +8.9% over the First Half of 2017 to 1.136.331 units. Out of the past 43 months, 41 have been in positive – the exceptions being May 2014 and April 2017, indicating Italian new car sales are well and truly recovered. However this dynamic increase has everything to do with artificial channels: while private sales are down 1.5% year-on-year, rental sales soar 17.1% with short-term rentals up 15.5% and long-term up 18.4%, while business sales do even better at +36% to gain 4 percentage points of market share. In terms of segment, SUV sales soar up 19.8% over the period, by far the best-performing category.

The Citroen C3 (+82%) is back inside Italy’s Top 10 over the period. Picture quattroruote.it 

Homegrown market leader Fiat adds over 23.000 sales compared to the same period a year ago, that’s a market-beating 11% gain to 21.7% share. In a Top 7 unchanged year-on-year, Volkswagen holds strong in 2nd place but trails the market at +6%, ahead of Ford (+10%) and Renault (+11%), Opel (+9%) and Peugeot (+7%). Toyota (+18%) and Citroen (+27%) are the best performing carmakers inside the Top 10. Below, Dacia (+15%), Alfa Romeo (+32%), Suzuki (+45%), Skoda (+24%), Seat (+16%) and Jaguar (+40%) all shine. Among smaller manufacturers, Maserati (+110%), Infiniti (+60%) and Aston Martin (+82%) make themselves noticed.

Italian Opel Mokka sales are up 34% so far in 2017. 

Over in the models ranking, the Fiat Panda is comfortably headed towards a 6th consecutive annual win depicts trailing the market growth at +4% to 7.7% share. That’s 2.3 times the level of the #2, the Lancia Ypsilon starting to crumble at -6% and falling to #8 in June. Less than 500 sales below is the performer of the year so far: the Fiat Tipo up 159% year-on-year to third place overall but ranking 2nd during three of the past four months. All Tipo body-types are now in cruising mode, with the station wagon topping its segment by far at 11.606 sales vs. 6.533 for the #2, the Renault Megane. The Renault Clio (+12%) and Fiat 500 (+17%) both overtaking the Fiat 500L (-9%) while the Ford Fiesta is up three spots to #7 thanks to deliveries up 11%.

The Toyota C-HR lands directly inside the Italian Top 30. Picture quattroruote.it 

Boosted by the new generation, the Citroen C3 is up 82% to break into the year-to-date Top 10 at #10, while the Fiat Punto (-18%) and VW Golf (-20%) both fall apart and exit the Top 10. The Opel Mokka (+34%), Dacia Sandero (+33%) and VW Tiguan (+254%) all benefit from new generations or facelift to improve their raking, and the Toyota C-HR is the most popular newcomer by far, landing directly at #28 with just under 1% market share. Other notable improvements include the Ford Kuga up 41%, the Renault Megane up 118%, Peugeot 3008 up 304% and the Alfa Romeo Giulia up 461% to edge into the Top 50 at #50.

Previous post: Italy June 2017: Dacia Sandero breaks into Top 10, market up 12.9%

One year ago: Italy First Half 2016: Fiat tightens grip on home market up 19%

Full H1 2017 Top 40 brands and Top 50 models vs. Full H1 2016 figures below.