France 1-6 September 2018: Sandero #1, Dacia up 20%, VW down 75%

The Dacia Sandero is the best-selling model in France outright so far in September.

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

As expected, the carmakers that rushed to register non WLTP-compliant cars before the new emissions rule’s implementation date of September 1 are waking up well hungover this month. In France, overall sales deep dive 37% year-on-year over the first six days of September. Volkswagen (-75%) is down to #10 vs. #5 YTD, Ford down to #11 vs. #7, Fiat down to #13 vs. #8 and Nissan down to #20 vs. #9. Meanwhile Peugeot (-32%) roughly follows the market to top the brands charts ahead of Citroen (-25%) and Renault (-18%) with Dacia (+20%), Kia (+22%), BMW (+14%) and Hyundai (+1%) also bucking the trend with year-on-year gains. The Dacia Sandero soars 30% year-on-year to snap the lead of the models ranking above the Citroen C3 (-28%), Peugeot 208 (-17%) and Renault Clio (+14%). Chances are this order will be remodelled before month-end though as Renault always backloads its months in France. The Citroen C3 Aircross lands at a solid 7th place with the Dacia Duster (+23%) also posting a double-digit gain at #9.

Previous post: France August 2018: Pre-WLTP stock clearances pull market up 40%

One year ago: France September 2017: Best September since 2009 but up a shy 1.1%

Full 1-6 September 2018 Top 10 brands and models below.