China retail August 2021: BYD (+123.5%) smiles, VW (-32.7%) cries, sales off -10.9%

The BYD Qin PLUS is up to #6 overall in August.

BSCB is the only non-Chinese medium to cover both wholesales (ex-factory shipments) and retail sales (end-customer sales) for China so you can get the most complete picture of the largest new vehicle market in the world. Retail sales tend to give a more accurate picture of the market as they roughly correspond to purchases by end-customers and are more difficult to artificially boost by manufacturers which can sometimes be the case for wholesales data. The selection of vehicles included in this update which extends to some LCVs such as microvans is off -10.9% year-on-year to 1.525.118 units, with a year-to-date volume up 21.5% to 13.104.020.

After losing -27.9% in July, this month Volkswagen accelerates its fall further at -32.7% but easily remains in the lead of the brands ranking. Positive results by the Polo (+54.1%), Tacqua (+52.6%), T-Cross (+12%), Phideon (+7.2%) and Passat (+2.5%) as well as the new ID.4 X, ID.4 Crozz, ID.6 X, ID.6 Crozz and Talagon are not enough to counterbalance freefalling nameplates such as the T-Roc (-86%), Bora (-58.2%), Tayron X (-56.5%), Sagitar (-55.1%), Tayron (-44.9%), Magotan (-43.7%), Golf (-42.8%), Teramont X (-41.6%), Santana (-38.8%) and Tiguan (-37.9%). In 2nd place, Toyota (-8.7%) manages to contain its fall to the single-digits thanks to strong performances by the Wildlander (+68.7%), RAV4 (+27.3%), Vios FS (+4.5%) and the new Allion, Crown Kluger and Levin GT and despite drastic falls by the Yaris L Sedan (-69.2%), Levin (-29.7%), IZOA (-28.9%), Yaris L (-28.9%), C-HR (-25.4%), Vios (-22.4%) and Corolla (-20.7%).

The new generation lifts Geely Emgrand sales up 60%, good for 8th place overall.

Honda (-36%) endures the steepest fall in the Top 13 and is handicapped by ghastly showings by the Avancier (-78.6%), UR-V (-77.2%), Inspire (-69.1%), Civic (-68.7%), Crider (-61.6%), CR-V (-50.3%) and Vezel (-48.1%). The Fit (+1963.9%) isn’t able to single-handedly help the brand. Only 3.000 units below is Nissan (-11.7%) which almost manages to match the market evolution thanks to the Teana (+28.6%) and Qashqai (+2.7%). The X-Trail (-79.8%) is responsible for much of Nissan’s fall this month. At #5 overall, Geely (+4.6%) is the first manufacturer to post an uptick in August as the recently renewed Emgrand (+60%) and the new Xingrui (10.194), Xingyue L (record 7.958) and Emgrand S (4.337) forge ahead.

Wuling (+30.2%) continues to be helped by the Hongguang MINI EV (+261.1%) scoring its second highest monthly volume. Below Changan (-10.2%), BYD (+123.5%) scores a stellar gain, the largest in the Top 25, as the new Qin PLUS hits a record 17.399 units and the Han (+637.3%), Yuan (+279.5%) and Tang (+176.9%) all post fantastic upticks. BMW (-13.2%) and Buick (-34.9%) close out the Top 10 in rather weak fashion, with Audi (-18.3%), Haval (-7.3%) and GAC (+24.5%) in tow. COS (+90.3%), Hongqi (+42.2%), Chery (+40.2%), Lynk & Co (+22.2%) and Dongfeng (+17.6%) also shine further down, while Ora (+216.5%) breaks its monthly volume record at 13.129. Additional record breakers include LI (9.394), Sehol (6.576) and Leap Motor (4.777) all reaching an all-time high point for the third month in a row. Finally, notice Tesla (-75.5%) in deep trouble outside the Top 50 vs. #23 year-to-date.

Model-wise, the Nissan Sylphy (-0.3%) sees its stability rewarded with an easy win, over 13.000 sales above its archenemy the VW Lavida (-15.9%). The Wuling Hongguang MINI EV (+261.1%) returns to the podium at #3 ahead of the Haval H6 (+1.4%) and Toyota Corolla (-20.7%). The BYD Qin PLUS is up a whopping 47 spots on last month to land in 6th place overall, by far the most successful recent launch above the BYD Song PLUS (#29), Hyundai Elantra (#32), Geely Xingrui (#35) and COS X5 (#39). Back to the Top 10 where the Toyota RAV4 (+27.3%) remains in 7th place, distancing the Geely Emgrand (+60%) up nine ranks on July to #8. The BMW 3 Series L (-9.4%) almost matches the market and climbs 15 spots on last month to #10.

Previous month: China retail July 2021: VW accelerates its fall to -27.9%, BYD, Wuling soar, Voyah lands

One year ago: China retail August 2020: Changan, BMW, Haval help market up a solid 8.8%

Full August 2021 Top 127 All-brands and Top 640 All-models below.