Greece February 2017: Nissan Qashqai stays on podium, market up 57%

Nissan Qashqai. Picture whatcar.com.au 

* See the Top 35 All-brands and Top 100 models by clicking on the title *

The Greek new car market rebounds back up 57% year-on-year on a particularly weak February 2016 base, lifting the year-to-date tally up 29% to 11.652. Given the size of the year-on-year gain this month, it’s no surprise that the Top 12 best-selling carmakers all lodge double-digit improvements. Market leader Toyota (+55%) fails to match the market growth rate but still stands at a dominant 12.4% share, while direct followers Volkswagen (+61%), Opel (+82%), Nissan (+108%) and Ford (+87%) are all below 10% but frankly outpace the market. Suzuki (+659%) outpaces all carmakers with an almost 8-fold gain, with Jeep (+107%), Seat (+110%), Skoda (+166%), Honda (+217%) and Kia (+558%) also more than doubling their sales compared to February 2016.

Model-wise, we witness a consolidation towards the top with 12 of the 15 best-sellers outpacing the market. The Toyota Yaris (+83%) dominates like in January and FY16, the Opel Corsa (+78%) is up 8 spots on January to return to the 2nd place it held over the Full Year 2016, the Nissan Qashqai is up 257% to #3 ahead of the VW Polo (+63%) and Opel Astra (+120%). The Suzuki Swift is up 11-fold, most likely due to discounts to clear stock ahead of the arrival of the new generation of the model later this year. The Nissan Micra (+130%), Renault Clio (+104%) and Kia Rio (+569%) also shine. Among recent launches (<12 months), the Fiat Tipo is up 19 ranks on January to a record 16th place, the Audi Q2 is up 14 to #22, the Toyota C-HR is down two to #26 and the Suzuki Ignis down 10 to #30.

Previous month: Greece January 2017: Suzuki Ignis in Top 20

One year ago: Greece January-February 2016: BMW X1 in Top 10, market down 16%

Full February Top 35 All-brands and Top 100 models below.