Turkey August 2019: Fiat Egea (+65%), VW Passat (+51.1%) impress in market down -23.6%

The VW Passat is up to #2 in Turkey in August.

Given August 2018 sales were already imploding -52.6%, the Turkish new light vehicle market somewhat “limits” its fall to -23.6% this year to 26.246 units, with Passenger Cars down -20.1% to 21.544 and Light Commercials crumbling -36.2% to just 4.702. The year-to-date volume is now down -45.7% to 239.317 vehicles. This month Volkswagen (+12.2%) and Fiat (+10.8%) stand out with the only gains in the Top 13, double-digit ones at that. This coincides with the announcement in September that Volkswagen has chosen Turkey as the location for its next big plant with an annual capacity of 300.000 units, building the Passat among other models. As such, President Erdogan has ordered its party official to switch from Audis to the VW Passat when their lease comes up for renewal in two months, setting an example  for thousands of party officials and government agencies. According to local newspaper Sozcu, Turkish state institutions were using more than 110.000 vehicles as of 2018. Volkswagen is the #1 brand this month at 15.3% share vs. 10.2% so far this year, distancing Renault (-16.2%) at 13.1% and Fiat at 12.7%.

Among the Top 10 brands, Skoda (-0.5%), Peugeot (-12.1%) and Hyundai (-14.1%) also manage to outpace the market, but Ford (-55.1%), Toyota (-38.5%) and Honda (-33%) aren’t so lucky. Further down, Land Rover (+372.7%), Jaguar (+87.5%) and Citroen (+1.4%) also post positive results. Model-wise, the Fiat Egea (+65%) remains untouchable at 8.8% share vs. 11.3% YTD, also signing the largest gain in the Top 6 and 3rd largest in the Top 25. The VW Passat (+51.1%) soars 6 spots on July to #2, potentially due to discounted fleet sales ahead of the arrival of the facelift (pictured) in dealership, eclipsing the the Renault Megane (-8.2%) and Clio (+16.9%). The Skoda Octavia (+191.2%), Kia Sportage (+147.9%), BMW 3 Series (+49.8%), VW Tiguan (+41.2%), Polo (+14.1%) and Golf (+4.4%) also manage a positive result inside the Top 25.

Previous month: Turkey July 2019: BMW, Mercedes, Audi contain losses in imploding market (-66%)

One year ago: Turkey August 2018: Honda Civic best-seller in market down -52.6%

Full August 2019 Top 40 All-brands and Top 25 models below.