Best Selling Cars – Matt's blog

Dacia Logan. Dacia is the best-performing major brand in Europe so far in 2013.

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

(Note models data will be added as soon as available) New car sales in Europe are not getting better, and far from it. In May, sales are down 6% year-on-year to 1,083,930 registrations which is the lowest May figure since 1993 when the market was below 1 million units… Dark times indeed, with only a bunch of country in positive vs. May 2012: by order of size, the UK (+11%), Belgium (+9%), Sweden (+0.1%), Finland (+40%), Slovenia (+5%). Hungary (+9%) and Estonia (+18%). All others drop, with Germany and France at -10%, Italy at -8%, Bulgaria and Ireland at -23%, the Netherlands at -37% and Romania at -47%…

Mercedes is the only brand in the European Top 10 to gain ground year-on-year!

Brand-wise, the horizon is equally clouded. Volkswagen logically leads the way but sees its sales drop by 7% to 137,521 units, ahead of Ford (-0.5%), Opel (-8%) and Peugeot, up 2 spots on April to #4 thanks to the 208 and 2008 which has started like a rocket in France. Audi shines at #5 while Fiat is up 3 spots to #7. Mercedes is the only manufacturer in the Top 10 to gain ground year-year both in May at +3% to 54,496 sales and year-to-date at +4%.

Further down, Hyundai is up a nudge at +0.4% to #13, Nissan is up 6% to #14, Seat up 13% to #16 and Dacia up 16% to #17, the best-performing major brand on the continent and also up 17% to #17 year-to-date. Notice also Honda up 12% YTD, Land Rover up 11% and Jaguar up 20%.

Previous month: Europe April 2013: Audi A3 breaks into Top 10 for the first time!

One year ago: Europe May 2012: Renault Megane back into Top 10

Full May 2013 Top 30 brands Ranking Table below.

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The Audi A3 is in the Top 10 for the first time since the nameplate launched in 1996.

* See the Top 10 best-selling models and brands by clicking on the title! *

Whereas recession has now spread across most of Europe, April new car sales in the region are unexpectedly up year-on-year for the first time since… August 2011 (!) at +2% to 1,086,501 registrations. Year-to-date, the market is still down 7% on 2012 at 4,190,447 units. According to Bloomberg, the Euro zone economy is forecast to stagnate in the 3 months through June and return to growth in the third quarter, so this might signal the start of a revival of the car market, especially as governments are starting to implement measures to boost sales. However, Autonews says there is no reason to rejoice as April sales were flattered by two extra days in many European markets after Easter holidays fell in March, with last year’s weak April also helping the year-on-year comparison. So this may not be the end of the tunnel after all.

Renault Clio sales are up 29% in April in Europe

Now taking full advantage of its new generation, the VW Golf is up a magnificent 18% year-on-year this month to dominate the ranking once again with 43,175 sales but is still down 2% year-to-date at 155,542 units. Outstanding month for the Renault Clio, also boosted by the new generation #1 in France, up a massive 29% to rank #2 for the second time in the last 3 months and on the podium for the 4th time in the last 6 months with 26,352 sales. The Clio is now also up to #2 year-to-date at 101,691 units vs. 101,282 for the Ford Fiesta, down to #5 in April. The VW Polo and Peugeot 208 are both back up 4 spots on March to #3 and #4 respectively.

Audi also placed the A4 in the European Top 10, last time in August 2012.

But the big event this month is the arrival of the Audi A3 in the monthly European Top 10 for the very first time since the nameplate’s original launch 17 years ago in 1996! The premium hatch is up to #9 with 16,787 sales (ahead of the Opel Astra!), up a whopping 45% year-on-year, with its year-to-date total now reaching 49,908 units, up 9% on 2012, and this is as the sedan version has not launched yet… As a reminder let’s note the A3 finished 2012 at #24 in the European ranking. It is the second Audi model to manage to break into the European monthly Top 10 after the A4 did so for the first time in July 2008, then peaking at an out-of-this-world #2 in August 2008 and clocking up a total of 6 Top 10 finishes, the last one being August 2012.

Can the Mercedes A-Class break into the European monthly Top 10 this year?

Audi therefore becomes the first premium brand to have ever placed two models in the European Top 10. BMW has one so far: the 3 Series which made its first appearance within the Top 10 back in July 1999 (However my monthly records are incomplete for that period so it may have been earlier) and peaked at #6 in December 2006. Mercedes has not yet managed to bring one of its models into the Top 10, at least in the last 30 years as the ‘Strich 8′ may have done so in 1974-1975 and the W123 in 1977-82 but sales figures are unavailable (please let me know if you have them!). The all-new A-Class, hailed as the brand’s most successful launch ever, may break new ground and do so in the coming months…

Dacia sales are up 20% in Western Europe so far in 2013.

The arrival of the A3 in the European Top 10 is another illustration of the ‘premium or low-cost‘ trend we have seen apply to European car sales over the last few years. In fact in 2013 year-to-date, Dacia (+20%) and Mercedes (+4%) are two of only a few carmakers to gain ground so far. BMW is stable and Audi down just 2% but up 9% to #6 in April…

Previous month: Europe March 2013: Nissan Qashqai and BMW 3 Series strike again

One year ago: Europe April 2012: BMW 3 Series in Top 10 for the first time since 2008

Full April 2013 Top 10 models and brands Ranking Tables below.

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Nissan Qashqai

* See the Top 10 best-selling models and brands by clicking on the title! *

No sign of recovery for new car sales in Europe, down 10% year-on-year both in March to 1,354,083 registrations and year-to-date at 3,107,087 units. This month while the UK resists again at +6%, Germany experiences the biggest drop at -17% and almost 100,000 sales lower than March 2012. The VW Golf is the most popular model on the continent once again and loses slightly less ground than the market at -8% to 48,935, while the other two models on the podium are boosted by the traditional mega-new-license-plate-month in the UK: the Ford Fiesta is up 4 spots on February to #2 but down 13% and the Opel Corsa is up 6 to #3 but down 14%.

BMW 3 Series

Boosted by the 4th generation, the Renault Clio is up again year-on-year at +9% in 4th position with 31,623 units and remains #3 year-to-date. Another outstanding month for the Nissan Qashqai at a best-ever 5th place for the second month in a row thanks to 29,116 sales, down just 4% on March 2012. The Peugeot 208 is down 4 ranks on last month but up 591% year-on-year as the model was launched at that time last year. Finally notice the BMW 3 Series pointing its bonnet in the Top 10 for the 4th time in the last 12 months at #10 with 21,263 sales, up 16% year-on-year and an even more impressive 31% year-to-date.

Previous post: Europe: The best-selling models in graphs 2002-2012

Previous month: Europe February 2013: Nissan Qashqai in Top 5 for the first time

One year ago: Europe March 2012: Nissan Qashqai and Toyota Yaris break records

Full March 2013 Top 10 models and brands Ranking Tables below.

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2002-2012 volume for the 2012 Top 5 models in Europe (click to enlarge the image).

* See Europe 1983-2012 Historical Data by clicking on the title! *

Back by popular demand, Josh’s graphs! Thank you all for your feedback, it looks like graphs are something you would like to see appear again on BestSellingCarsBlog… so I have enrolled Josh and his outstanding graph-creating skills to do so. Today we wanted to bring to life a few European trends over the last decade. The graph above follows the sales volume for the Top 5 models in 2012, going back to 2002. Now. This graph only shows the Top 5 cars in 2012, not each year otherwise it would be too busy. On top of the VW Golf and Opel Astra, the Peugeot 206 and 207 also ranked #1 over that period but don’t appear on this graph – bear with us, this one is coming soon.

2002-2012 sales variation of the Top 5 models in Europe in 2012 (click to enlarge the image).

What becomes really apparent looking at this graph and the second one above is that apart from the Ford Fiesta (+11% between 2002 and 2012), all Top 5 models actually find themselves at a much lower volume level in 2012 than they were in 2002: the VW Golf is still #1 but down 25%, the VW Polo is down 14%, the Opel Corsa down 31% and the Opel Astra down 38%. There is a word for all this madness: fragmentation! More and more models have flooded the European market over the last decade, with the Top 5 holding 12.9% of the overall European market in 2012 vs. 18.9% in 2002, and the Top 10 holding 22% vs. 31% in 2002.

See Europe 1983-2012 Historical Data below.

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Nissan Qashqai. Picture courtesy of ernir, all rights reserved.

* See the Top 10 best-selling models and brands by clicking on the title! *

It is not getting any better for new car sales in Europe: down another 10% year-on-year in February to 832,998 registrations, which brings the year-to-date total to 1,754,315 units, down 9% on 2012. Out of the Top 5 markets, once again only the UK registers a year-on-year increase. Shockingly, no brand in the Top 10 gains ground on February 2012: Volkswagen (-10%) leads, followed by Renault (-15%), Peugeot (-9%), Ford (-21%) and Opel (-16%). Year-to-date, only BMW at #9 with 87,761 sales is in positive at +5%…

Renault Clio 4

Model-wise, the VW Golf continues on its one-car-show with stable sales year-on-year at 32,663 units, over 10,000 above the #2, the Renault Clio very impressive at 22,318 sales, up 17% year-on-year thanks to the success of the new generation, #1 in France. This is the Clio’s best European ranking since February 2011 and its third time on the podium in the last 4 months. The Peugeot 208 continues to shine at #4 with 18,867 units.

Fiat Panda

But the best performance this month comes from the car that hasn’t stopped turning all the traditional European car sales trends on their heads since its introduction in 2007: the Nissan Qashqai. Whereas the model is basically 6 years old with a slight facelift, it hits a record 5th place this month with 15,813 sales, up 4% year-on-year and the best-ever ranking reached by a Japanese model… Notice also the Fiat Panda up to #8, its best ranking since last April and 5th time in the Top 10 in the last 12 months.

Previous month: Europe January 2013: Worst January in 23 years

One year ago: Europe February 2012: Ford Focus on podium, Fiat Panda in Top 10

Full February 2013 Top 10 models and brands Ranking Tables below.

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Nissan Qashqai

* See the Top 10 best-selling models and brands by clicking on the title! *

Down a painful 10% year-on-year to 911,859, the European new car market delivers its worst month of January since 1990… If the UK (+11%), Poland (+8%) and Portugal (+6%) progress, Germany (-9%), France (-15%), Italy (-18%), the Netherlands (-30%) and Spain (-10%) all fall heavily. Brand-wise, the January Top 7 is identical to the Full Year 2012 ranking with Volkswagen (-12%) and Ford (-26%) in the lead while Opel/Vauxhall manages to go up 2% thanks to the Mokka (5,500 sales this month). Renault (-12%), Peugeot and Citroen (both at -17%) dive while Fiat (-6%) and Audi (-2%) do ok. BMW (+5%) and Mercedes (+2%) are the only other Top 10 carmakers to gain ground year-on-year this month…

Fiat Panda

The VW Golf remains by far the most popular model on the continent but drops faster than the market at -18% despite the arrival of the new generation. The Ford Fiesta is back up to #2 but it is only 281 sales above the VW Polo and 329 above the Renault Clio, up 11% on January 2012 thanks to the 4th generation. The Peugeot 208 follows at #5 with 19,260 sales.

The Nissan Qashqai is back within the Top 10, hitting a record #7 spot thanks to 17,047 sales, a ranking it also reached in March and July 2012 and the best-ever monthly ranking for a Japanese model in Europe. Notice also the Opel Astra and Corsa both progressing year-on-year at +1% and +2% respectively and the Fiat Panda breaking into the European Top 10 for the 5th time in the last 12 months at #10 and 14,307 units.

Previous post: Europe Full Year 2012: Now with Top 350 models and Top 60 brands

Previous month: Europe December 2012: Peugeot 208 up to #2

One year ago: Europe January 2012: Skoda Octavia in Top 10 for the first time

Full January 2013 Top 10 models and brands Ranking Tables below.

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European sales of Mercedes B-Class are up 89% in 2012.

* See the Top 350 All-models and Top 60 All-brands rankings by clicking on the title! *

After going through the European Top 10 models and brands in detail, we now have access to a complete ranking! Note this ranking is slightly different as it includes more countries, notably Turkey, so all sales figures are higher. The only change in the Top 10 is the Opel Astra going from #7 to #5 and kicking the Renault Clio down to #6 and the Ford Focus down to #7 in the process. The Top 10 models are the only ones selling over 200,000 units in the continent this year, and there are exactly 30 more models above 100,000 sales, starting with the Fiat Panda at #11, up 2 spots but down 3% year-on-year to 185,230 units. The BMW 3 Series is up 5 ranks and 9% to #12 with 181,769 sales while the Skoda Octavia is up one to #13 and the Toyota Yaris is up a fantastic 13 spots and 25% to #14 at 176,719 units, even breaking into the monthly Top 10 in March and September…

Thanks to the Zafira Tourer, European Zafira sales are up 33% in 2012.

The Peugeot 208 is the best performing newcomer in the ranking this year, landing directly at #16 with 161,105 sales and peaking at #2 in December… A possible contender for the 2013 pole position, no less. There are a few more outstanding performers among the 100,000+ sellers: the BMW 1 Series is up 12 ranks and 27% to #17, the VW Tiguan up 17 and 33% to #18, its first time in the European year-end Top 20, the Mercedes B-Class up a huge 47 ranks and 89% to #27 thanks to the new generation and the VW Up! landing at #31 for its first full year in market.

Sales of Kia Rio are up 133% in 2012.

Within the remainder of the Top 100, the best performers in 2012 are the Opel Zafira up 33% to #43, Hyundai ix35 up 26% to #45, Kia Sportage up 31% to #48, Audi Q3 up 853% to #55 for its first full year of sales, Kia Rio up 133% to #57 and Range Rover Evoque up 330% to #88. Further down, notice the Hyundai i40 up 286% to #105, Mercedes M-Class up 80% to #106, Fiat Freemont up 89% to 127 and Opel Antara up 115% to #150.

Audi Q3

Among the newcomers, the Skoda Citigo lands at #122, the Dacia Lodgy at #123, VW Beetle new generation at #125, Mazda CX-5 at #128, Citroen DS5 at #134, Volvo V40 at #141, Seat Mii at #149, Ford B-Max at #161, Subaru XV at #166, Citroen C4 Aircross at #185, Toyota Prius+ at #192, Fiat 500L at #197, Opel Mokka at #217, Toyota GT86 at #227, Peugeot 4008 at #241, Citroen C-Elysee at #252, Peugeot 301 at #253, Skoda Rapid at #256, Seat Toledo at #279, Dacia Dokker at #286 and Mercedes Citan at #292. Pfew!

Mercedes SL

Among prestige models, the Jaguar XF is up 15% to #147, Mercedes SL up 241% to #240, Bentley Continental GT/GTC up 42% to #266, Ferrari FF up 96% to #306, Lamborghini Aventador up 256% to #321 and the Lamborghini Murcielago up 86% to #343. Brand-wise out of the 60 carmakers available on the continent, only 13 gain ground in 2012. Land Rover (+41%), Bentley (+26%), Lamborghini (+21%), Kia (+20%) and Jeep (+18%) do best while Audi impresses at #6 with a record 717,898 sales, up 4%.

Previous post: Europe Full Year 2012: Nissan Qashqai in Top 10 for the first time

Previous detailed ranking: Europe October 2012: Now with Top 342 models and Top 60 brands!

Previous year: Europe Full Year 2011: Top 318 All-models ranking now available!

Full Year 2012 Top 350 All-models and Top 60 All-brands Ranking Tables below.

Read more…

Nissan Qashqai

* See the Top 10 best-selling models and brands by clicking on the title! *

Difficult year for new car sales in Europe, down 8% on 2011 to 12,573,842 registrations. The VW Golf manages to keep the pole position for the 5th year in a row but loses more ground than the market at -11% to 431,742 sales. This is potentially the Golf’s second weakest ever annual sales total in Europe after the 416,507 units it sold in 2006 when it ranked #4. The Golf ranked #1 each month in 2012 and peaked at 52,933 sales in March. It has now been #1 in Europe for 33 consecutive months (no interruption since March 2010), for 55 of the last 57 months and for 27 of the last 31 years.

Renault Clio IV

All models bar one in the Top 10 fall faster than the market: the Ford Fiesta reclaims the 2nd spot it last held in 2010 with 306,405 sales, down 12%, while the VW Polo is down one rank to #3 at 287,828 units, down 20%. Boosted by the arrival of the 4th generation, the Renault Clio manages to climb back onto the podium in November and December but finishes the year at #5 like in 2011, down 17% and below the Opel Corsa down 18%. The Ford Focus (-15%) and Opel Astra (-20%) exchange positions.

Peugeot 208

But the biggest event in the 2012 European Top 10 is the entrance of the Nissan Qashqai, up 4 spots and down just 0.3% year-on-year to rank #8 with 207,885 sales. To my knowledge this is the first time ever a Japanese model manages to break into the European year-end Top 10! Before 2012, the Qashqai had only broken into the monthly Top 10 twice, in July 2010 and September 2011. It managed that feat 7 times this year, peaking at a record #7 in March and July.

Toyota Yaris

3 models made their very first appearance in the monthly European Top 10 this year: the Skoda Octavia did so in January, the Toyota Yaris in March and repeated the performance in September, and the Peugeot 208 shot up directly to #5 in July, climbed onto the podium in August and hit a best-ever #2 in December. The Audi A4 for its part reappeared in the Top 10 in August and for the first time since January 2009 while the BMW 3 Series climbed into the Top 10 3 times this year: in April, June and December when it reached #8, its highest ranking since September 2007.

Previous post: Europe December 2012: Peugeot 208 up to #2

Previous year: Europe Full Year 2011: VW Polo up to 2nd spot for the first time

Full Year 2012 and every monthly Top 10 models and brands Ranking Tables below.

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Peugeot 208

* See the Top 10 best-selling models and brands by clicking on the title! *

The European new car market finishes 2012 on a very dark note: down 15% year-on-year in December to 847,366 registrations, which brings the Full Year 2012 total to 12,573,842 units, down 8% on 2011. Germany, down 16% in December, pulled Europe with it this month while France , Italy and Spain all delivered heavy drops over the Full Year at -14%, -20% and -13% respectively. The VW Golf suffers from the transition between the 6th and 7th generations of the model and sees its sales fall by 32% year-on-year in December to 22,698 units, still #1 however. Boosted by a strong performance in France, the Peugeot 208 is up 6 spots on last month to hit a best-ever 2nd place with 19,407 sales.

BMW 3 Series

The Renault Clio, helped by the arrival of the 4th generation, stays on the European podium for the 2nd month in a row and only the third time since February 2011 at 18,758 sales, down just 7% year-on-year. The VW Polo (-29%) and Ford Fiesta (-33%) are kicked down to #4 and #5 respectively. The BMW 3 Series manages to climb into the Top 10 for the third time this year after April and June but only the 4th time in the last 4 years after December 2008, up 21% year-on-year to #8 at 15,171 units, its highest ranking since September 2007…

Previous post: Europe October 2012: Now with Top 342 models and Top 60 brands

Previous month: Europe November 2012: Renault Clio on podium for first time in almost 2 years

One year ago: Europe Full Year 2011: VW Polo up to #2 for the first time

Full December 2012 Top 10 models and brands Ranking Tables below.

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The VW Up! is now among the 20 most popular vehicles in Europe.

* See the Top 342 best-selling models and Top 60 all-brands by clicking on the title! *

Thanks to Lancia Lover and Autoweek.nl, I can now share with you the Top 342 (almost) all-models and Top 60 all-brands rankings for Europe in October 2012! The ranking is slightly different from the monthly Top 10 I published earlier because it includes Turkey. Below the VW Golf and Ford Fiesta, the Renault Clio (all generations) is now #3 at 24,923 sales, ahead of the VW Polo and Peugeot 208. The Fiat Panda still ranks within the Top 10 for the first time since last May at 17,335 units.

Audi A1

Outside the Top 10, the BMW 3 Series is up to #13 with 15,537 sales, the VW Tiguan brilliantly enters the Top 15 at 13,486 units, the Audi A4 is up to #18 but the most spectacular performance in Europe this month is the VW Up! entering the Top 20 thanks to 12,209 sales. Notice also the Mercedes B-Class up to #25, the Audi A1 up to an excellent #30, the Hyundai i30 up to #31, the Kia Sportage at #42, Kia Cee’d at #45, Mercedes A-Class at #49 and Audi Q3 at #50.

Dacia Lodgy

Below, let’s salute the encouraging performance of the Volvo V40 at #56 and 5,924 units, already the brand’s best-seller on the continent, the Audi Q5 at #63, the Range Rover Evoque now among the Top 80 best-selling vehicles in Europe at #79, the Dacia Lodgy at #82 with 4,074 sales, the Ford B-Max at #83 and 4,067 units, Skoda Citigo at #85 with 3,991 sales, Mercedes M-Class at #91 and Mercedes GLK at #100.

Mini Paceman

There are 7 new entrants in the ranking since our last European all-models ranking update in July: the Fiat 500L lands at #129 with 1,857 units, the Opel Mokka ranks #151 at 1,365 sales, the Skoda Rapid is #201 with 598 units, the Seat Toledo at #222, Mercedes Citan at #248, Ferrari F12 at #306 and Mini Paceman at #323.

Ferrari F12 Berlinetta

Other big gainers include the new generation VW Beetle at #104, the Seat Mii at #113, Citroen C4 Aircross at #130, Toyota Prius+ at #135, Mitsubishi Outlander at #139, Subaru XV at #146, Nissan Leaf at #183, Peugeot 4008 at #199, Toyota GT86 at #203 and Citroen C-Elysee at #233. Finally, the Bentley Continental GT/GTC is at #262 with 137 sales, the Lamborghini Aventador found 18 new homes, Rolls Royce sold 10 Phantom, 7 Maybach 57/62 exchanged hands, 3 Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano and one lonely Bugatti Veyron.

Previous October post: Europe October 2012: Peugeot 208 #3, Fiat Panda back in Top 10

Most recent post: Europe November 2012: Renault Clio back on podium for first time in 2 years

Latest All-models Europe update: Europe 7 months 2012: Now available with Top 325 models!

One year ago: Europe November 2011: Opel Corsa up to third place

Full October 2012 Top 342 models and Top 60 brands Ranking Tables below.

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