Russia February 2021: Skoda (+35.2%), Mazda (+47%) impress, Haval (+76.9%) breaks record in market up 0.8%

First Top 25 appearance for the new gen Skoda Octavia. Picture zr.ru

New light vehicle sales in Russia stabilise in February at +0.8% to 120.081 units, leading to a year-to-date tally down -1.4% to 215.294. Homegrown behemoth Lada (+13.1%) both leads and scores the largest gain in the Top 5 to a strong 23.5% share. Followers Kia (-3.5%), Hyundai (-3.7%), Renault (+0.5%) and Toyota (-7.3%) all fail to match the market growth rate and round out the Top 5. Just below, Skoda (+35.2%) drops one spot on January to #5 but delivers a very healthy uptick as does Mazda (+47%) at #10. In contrast, Nissan (-17%), GAZ (-14.8%) and Volkswagen (-8.5%) all struggle.

After Chery last month, in February Haval (+76.9%) is the Chinese hero, advancing to a record 11th place with an all-time high 1.8% share. This way, Haval equals the Chinese ranking record Chery established last month. For its part, Chery (+337.2%) is up 4-fold year-on-year but down one spot on January to #12. Keep in mind Mercedes and BMW don’t report monthly sales in Russia anymore and would traditionally rank above Chery and Haval. Other great performers further down the ranking include FAW (+78.1%), Ford (+74%), Geely (+59.8%), Cadillac (+58.6%), Peugeot (+47.9%), Porsche (+39.6%), and Genesis (+26.9%). Newcomers Cheryexeed (#33) and GAC (#42) remain modest.

Over in the models ranking, the Lada Granta (+2.4%) reclaims the top spot off the Kia Rio (+4.9%) which drops one spot on January to #2 with the Lada Vesta (+7.9%), Hyundai Creta (+0.6%) and Hyundai Solaris (+23.8%) holding onto their January rankings. The Lada Niva (+29.3%) continues to benefit from the facelift of the previously Chevrolet-branded Niva while the Lada 4×4 was rebranded Niva Legend and is included in the Niva total – confusing to say the least. The Toyota RAV4 (+5%) is up two spots to #8 while the Skoda Rapid PA II is back in the Top 10 at #10. Notice also the Mazda CX-5 (+34.9%) and Lada XRAY (+33.8%) posting extravagant gains. The Skoda Octavia A8 (new generation) makes its entrance in the Russian Top 25 at #25.

Previous month: Russia January 2021: Chery and Haval break records, Kia Rio best-seller, Lada Niva up in market down -4.2%

One year ago: Russia February 2020: Renault, Toyota, Haval brave frozen conditions (-2.2%)

Full February 2021 Top 50 All-brands and Top 25 models below.