Best Selling Cars – Matt's blog

VW Golf

* See the Top 50 best-selling models by clicking on the title! *

Traditionally new car sales in Ireland slip down through the year, with January being the strongest month of the year and December the weakest. 2012 is no exception, with registrations down to 3,098 in August compared to 4,431 in July and 6,370 in June. This is down 1% year-on-year and brings the year-to-date total to 74,158 units, down 11% on 2011. Volkswagen has a stellar month in Ireland, managing to place 3 models on the podium! While the 7th generation is about to be unveiled, the VW Golf leads the way with 149 sales and 4.8% and is now up to #2 year-to-date at 3,197 units and 4.3% below the Ford Focus, #5 this month, at 3,499 and 4.7%.

The VW Polo is up 8 spots on last month to #2 with 124 sales and 4%, it is #13 year-to-date at 2.2% and is followed in August by the VW Passat, #3 at 104 units and 3.4%, ranking #7 year-to-date. The Nissan Qashqai is 4th at 3.3% and now down to #3 year-to-date with 3,194 sales and 4.3%. Other great performers in the Top 10 are the Toyota Corolla up 4 ranks to #7, the Opel Astra up 21 to #8, the BMW 5 Series up 6 to #9 and the Hyundai ix35 up 3 to #10.

Notice also the BMW 3 Series up 9 spots to #14 vs. #33 year-to-date, the Skoda Superb up 6 to #20, the Mercedes C-Class up 5 to #25 vs. #42 year-to-date, the Skoda Yeti up 24 to #26 vs. #43, the Audi A3 up 23 to #28 vs. #51, the Toyota Aygo up to #31 vs. #101 and the Peugeot 208 up to #35 vs. #112.

Previous month: Ireland July 2012: Renault Fluence takes the lead

One year ago: Ireland August 2011: VW Golf takes off in quiet market

Full August 2012 Top 50 Ranking Table below.

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Renault Fluence

* See the Top 50 best-selling models by clicking on the title! *

After dropping 42% in June, the Irish new car market is back up 9% year-on-year in July to 4,431 registrations, bringing the year-to-date total to 71,065 units, down 12% on 2011. For the second time ever in Ireland after October 2010, the Renault Fluence is the most popular model in the country this month with 246 sales and 5.4%, up a massive 23 spots on June. It now ranks #10 year-to-date at 1,730 units and 2.4%. The VW Golf follows with 242 sales and 5.3% and the Opel Insignia rounds up the podium, up 5 ranks to 154 units and 3.5%.

Ford Galaxy

Leader last month and year-to-date, the Ford Focus is down to #4 in July with 145 sales and 3.3%, ahead of the Ford Fiesta (-1), Toyota Yaris (-4) and Avensis (-2). Great performers this month also include the Audi A4 at #12 vs. #28 year-to-date, the Kia Sportage up 8 spots to #14, the Hyundai i30 up 10 to #17, the Skoda Fabia up 12 to #22, the Ford Galaxy up a massive 80 ranks to #27 and the Mercedes C-Class up 33 to #30.

Previous month: Ireland June 2012: Toyota Yaris up to #2

One year ago: Ireland July 2011: BMW 5 Series, Audi A6 shine in weak market

Full July 2012 Top 50 Ranking Table below.

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Toyota Yaris

* See the Top 50 best-selling models by clicking on the title! *

Car sales in Ireland continue on their downward trend, losing a worrying 42% year-on-year in June to 6,370 registrations. Halfway through the year, total sales stand at 66,657, down 14% on 2011. The Ford Focus is the best-selling model in the country for the third time this year after January and May with 354 sales and 5.6%. It also leads the year-to-date ranking with 3,255 units and 4.9%.

Opel Zafira

In second position, the Toyota Yaris reaches its highest ranking in Ireland in at least 2 years with 258 units and 4.1%, up 7 spots on May and now ranking #5 year-to-date vs. #10 in 2011. The Nissan Qashqai stays #3 with 244 sales and 3.8% and #2 year-to-date at 2,970 units and 4.5% vs. #7 in 2011. The Ford Fiesta is up 2 ranks to #4, followed by the Toyota Avensis (+6), Renault Megane (-2) and VW Golf (-5).

Further down, notice the BMW 5 Series up 8 spots to #11, the BMW 3 Series up 14 to #12, the Audi A4 up 17 to #15, the Hyundai i40 very solid at #17, the Opel Zafira up 25 to #21, the Suzuki Swift up 48 to #35, the Suzuki SX4 up 33 to #38, the Seat Leon up 54 to #39 and two new entrants in the Irish Top 50: the VW Up! up 3 ranks to #48 and the Peugeot 208 landing at #50 for its very first month of sales in the country.

Previous month: Ireland May 2012: Ford Focus back in command

One year ago: Ireland June 2011: Ford Focus reclaims leadership, Renault Clio #2

Full June 2012 Top 50 Ranking Table below.

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Ford Focus

* See the Top 50 best-selling models by clicking on the title! *

Irish car sales are wobbly again in May at -18% year-on-year to 7,698 registrations, bringing the year-to-date total to 59,946 units, down 9% on 2011. For the first time since January, the Ford Focus is back in pole position with 463 sales and a shiny 6% market share. It also leads the 2012 year-to-date ranking at 2,893 units and 4.8%. Leader last month, the VW Golf is down to #2 in May with 366 sales and 4.8%, followed by the Nissan Qashqai at 306 units and 4%.

BMW 1 Series

Very strong month for the Renault Megane, up 6 spots on April to #4, the Ford Fiesta up 11 to #6, the Opel Insignia up 12 to #10, the Seat Ibiza up 6 to #18, the Hyundai i30 up 7 to #22, the BMW 3 Series up 2 to #26, the Kia Cee’d up 16 to #27, the BMW 1 Series up a huge 60 ranks to #28 and the Opel Zafira up 16 to #46. Notice also the very good hold of the Hyundai ix35 at #13, the Hyundai i40 at 17 and the Honda Civic at #24.

Previous month: Ireland April 2012: VW Golf in the lead, Hyundai i40 #7

One year ago: Ireland May 2011: Ford Focus and Renault Fluence take off

Full May 2012 Top 50 Ranking Table below.

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Hyundai i40

* See the Top 50 best-selling models by clicking on the title! *

Typically peaking at the start of the year, the Irish new car market typically slows down as the months go by and 2012 is no different, with April down 49% on March but more worryingly also down 22% year-on-year at 6,691 registrations. The year-to-date total stands at 52,260 units, down 7% on 2011. For the first time since last August, the VW Golf takes the lead of the models ranking thanks to 334 sales and a solid 5% share. It however stays #3 year-to-date behind the Ford Focus, down to #12 this month, and the Nissan Qashqai, #1 in March but now #15.

After leading the market in February and falling down to #12 last month, the Toyota Avensis is back up to #2 in April at 258 units and 3.9% and is followed by the Toyota Auris, up 10 spots on March and at its best in over a year and a half. Below the VW Passat, Renault Fluence and Nissan Micra, steady at strong levels, the Hyundai i40 ranks #7, up a huge 22 ranks on last month and simply its 2nd highest position anywhere in the world behind the 5th spot it reached in Norway last August.

Other great performers this month include the Hyundai ix35 up 12 spots to break into the Irish Top 10 for the very first time at #10 with 168 sales and 2.5%, the Audi A1 up a massive 54 ranks to #18 at 110 units and 1.6%, the Honda Civic up 16 spots to #23 and the Mitsubishi Pajero making a remarkable incursion in the Top 50 after selling no unit in March.

Previous month: Ireland March 2012: Nissan Qashqai leads at 8.8% market share!

One year ago: Ireland April 2011: VW Passat best-seller, Golf #1 year-to-date

Full April 2012 Top 50 Ranking Table below.

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Nissan Qashqai

* See the Top 50 best-selling models by clicking on the title! *

The Irish new car market is down 9% year-on-year in March at 13,010 registrations, bringing the year-to-date total to 45,628 units, down 4% on 2011. Big surprise on top of the models ranking: the Nissan Qashqai has a huge month, clocking up 1,140 sales for an enormous 8.8% market share and leading Irish sales for the first time ever… It jumps up to #2 in the 2012 year-to-date ranking at 2,255 units, only 14 below the Ford Focus, #3 this month with 529 sales.

Nissan Juke

The VW Golf is up one spot to #2 at 642 units and 4.9%, the VW Passat is up two to #4 and 2.8%, the Skoda Octavia stays 5th and the Renault Fluence is up 4 ranks to #6. The rest of the Top 10 is in big progression on February, including the Opel Astra at +10 to #7, the Nissan Micra at +16 to #8 and most impressive of all, the Nissan Juke up 21 spots to #10. This makes it 3 Nissans in the Top 10 and to celebrate, Nissan leads the brands ranking this month at 14.4% share!

Nissan Note

Further down, the Audi Q3 breaks into the Irish Top 50 for the first time, up 17 ranks to #37 with 102 sales and 0.8%, the Seat Leon is up a massive 66 spots to #40 and the Nissan Note is up 28 ranks to #46.

Previous month: Ireland February 2012: Toyota Avensis ahead of Ford Focus

One year ago: Ireland March 2011: Ford Focus takes the lead

Full March 2012 Top 50 Ranking Table below.

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Toyota Avensis

* See the Top 50 best-selling models by clicking on the title! *

Irish new car sales are down 8% year-on-year in February at 11,400 registrations, bringing the 2012 year-to-date total into negative at 32,561 units, down 2% on 2011. The Toyota Avensis adds Ireland to its February 2012 hunting board, being already the best-selling model in Norway and Finland this month. It sells 519 units for a 4.6% market share but stays #2 year-to-date at 1,582 sales and 4.9% behind the Ford Focus, #2 this month, at 1,739 units and 5.3%.

The VW Golf climbs onto the podium with 441 sales and 3.9%, ahead of the Nissan Qashqai, Skoda Octavia and VW Passat all at 3.4%. The Toyota Yaris is down 4 spots on January to #7 and 3% but is still #4 year-t0-date with a brilliant 3.8% share. The Kia Sportage is up a massive 17 ranks on last month to #11, the Fiat Panda goes from #111 in January to #19 this month, the Skoda Superb is up to #20 and the Hyundai i40 up to #22.

Previous month: Ireland January 2012: Ford Focus and Toyota Yaris start off well

One year ago: Ireland February 2011: Toyota Avensis keeps the lead, VW Passat #3

Full February 2012 Top 50 Ranking Table below.

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Ford Focus

* See the Top 50 best-selling models by clicking on the title! *

Traditionally in Ireland January is by far the strongest month of the year and 2012 is no exception: the market goes from a miserable 365 registrations in December to a whopping 21,221 in January, up 2% year-on-year. #1 in Full Year 2011, the Ford Focus starts 2012 in the same vein, vastly improving on its 2011 share of 4.7% to reach 6% in January thanks to 1,279 sales.

Toyota Yaris

The Toyota Avensis takes the 2nd spot at 1,064 units and 5% share ahead of the Toyota Yaris, up to a brilliant third place with 884 sales and 4.2%, a score that already constitutes 38% of its Full Year 2011 total… The VW Golf, despite a significant albeit unseasonal contribution of the Cabriolet version, is down to #4 followed by the Nissan Qashqai and VW Passat. The Skoda Octavia is up 5 spots on its 2011 ranking this month at #7 while the VW Polo at #10, BMW 5 Series at #12 and Hyundai ix35 at #16 are all up 5 notches on last year.

BMW 1 Series

Further down the ranking, other outstanding performers include the VW Jetta at #23 (vs. #41 in 2011), Hyundai i40 at #26 (vs. #99), Peugeot 508 at #29 (vs. #53) and the BMW 1 Series at #35 vs. #85, selling in one month almost as much as in the Full Year 2011!

Previous post: Ireland Full Year 2011: Ford Focus reclaims pole position

One year ago: Ireland January 2011: Toyota Avensis, VW Golf and Toyota Corolla off to great start

Full January 2012 Top 50 Ranking Table below.

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Ford Focus

* See the Top 50 best-selling models by clicking on the title! *

Traditionally in Ireland the end of the year see sales slow down to a gridning halt in anticipation for the new Model Year. 2011 is no exception with December sales down to a tiny 365 units. In this context the models ranking for December is totally irrelevant but for curiosity’s sake let’s notice the BMW 5 Series and Toyota Avensis equal-#1 with 51 sales and the Mitsubishi Pajero at #4, thanks to another batch of Army orders.

BMW 5 Series

In 2011 the Irish market is up 2% to 88,875 registrations. After the Renault Megane’s interruption last year, the Ford Focus, helped by the new generation, reclaims the title of best-selling car in Ireland with 4,209 sales and 4.7% share, up 8%. In fact the Ford Focus has been the #1 car in the country for 9 of the last 11 years, the only other year it didn’t rank #1 being 2004 when it was passed by the Toyota Corolla.

Renault Fluence

The next 4 models were all #1 in the monthly ranking at some stage this year. The VW Golf stays #2 with 4,003 units and 4.5%, up 1%, the Toyota Avensis is up 3 spots and 6% to 3,566 sales and 4%, the VW Passat is up 10 spots and 69% to 3,470 units and 3.9% and the Renault Fluence is up 14 ranks and 135% to 3,015 sales and 3.4%. Leader in 2010, the Renault Megane is down 36% to #9.

Outside the Top 10, great 2011 performers include the Toyota Auris up 47% to #13, the BMW 5 Series up  59% to #17, the Nissan Micra up 76% to #18, the Hyundai ix35 up 205% to #21 and the Nissan Juke up  to #22 for its first full year of sales.

Previous month: Ireland November 2011: Army orders boost Mitsubishi Pajero sales

Previous year: Ireland Full Year 2010: Renault Megane best-seller, ahead of Golf and Focus

Full Year 2011 Top 241 and December 2011 Top 10 Ranking Tables below.

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Mitsubishi Pajero

* Click on the title for the November Top 20 & 2011 YTD Top 50 best-selling models! *

Thanks to Guillaume and his very clever research I am now able to confirm that the reason why the Mitsubishi Pajero jumped into the Irish Top 10 this month is because of a special order from the Irish Army! Many thanks Guillaume!

After having started at 20,899 registrations in January, Irish car sales are down to 735 units in November (-50% year-on-year). This is a tradition in Ireland where sales tend to be very heavily biased towards the first half of the year. You can see this trend and the evolution through the year of the Irish car market in 2010 and 2011 by clicking on ‘Read more’ at the end of the post.

What this means is the November models ranking is not wildly relevant as it is off a tiny base. The VW Polo snatches the pole position thanks to 81 sales and an unusual 11% market share and is followed by the Opel Astra at 7.8% and the Toyota Yaris at 4.5%. Notice the Mitsubishi Pajero at an exceptional 6th place with 23 units sold, which is 64% of its total sales for the year!

What it also means is you are pretty much looking at the final 2011 models ranking because December will only bring very minor tweaks. After a one year interruption in 2010 the Ford Focus will reclaim its traditional best-seller title in Ireland and for the moment it stands at 4,203 sales and 4.7%, with the VW Golf coming 2nd with 3,944 units and 4.5% and the Toyota Avensis rounding up the podium with 3,515 sales and 4% share.

Previous month: Ireland October 2011 Toyota Avensis leads weak market

Full November 2011 Top 20 and year-to-date Top 50 Ranking Tables below.

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