France May 2026: BEVs up 92.7% to 29.1% share, is the Renault Clio VI a flop?
The Renault Clio 6 only holds 2.8% of its home market in May.
The French new car market edges up 3.7% year-on-year in May to sign a second YoY growth in the past 3 months. However keep in mind May 2025 was off -12.3% on the year prior The YTD tally however remains in negative – just – at -0.6% to 668,379. Petrol sales are off -37.4% to 18,926 and 14.7% share vs. 24.4% a year ago, diesel implodes -52.5% to just 3,291 and 2.6% share vs. 5.6% in May 2025, HEVs edge up 0.4% to 54,774 and 42.6% share vs. 44% last year and PHEVs are down -6.5% to 7,648 and 6% share vs. 6.6% a year ago. Finally BEVs skyrocket +92.7% to 37,412 and 29.1% share vs. 15.7% in May 2025. Year-to-date, BEV sales are up 55.4% to 185,714 and 27.8% share vs. 17.8% over the first five months of 2025.
The Tesla Model Y is up to #3 in France in May.
The Top 3 manufacturers are all down. Renault (-10.9%) falls to its lowest market share since last August at 15.4% while Peugeot (-14.7%) is in even worse shape and drops to 12.4%. Dacia (-2.9%) is also weak while Volkswagen (+0.1%) is stable and overtakes Citroen (-7.6%) to reach the 4th place overall. Volkswagen is now #5 year-to-date above Toyota (+5.7%), despite the latter signing a relatively solid month. BMW (+39.5%) is up two ranks on April to #7 with 4.5% share, its best performance this year so far. Surreal score for Tesla, up 655.3% year-on-year to #8 overall with 4.2% share vs. 1.3% last month. Skoda (+13.5%) is also robust, distancing Audi (+7.4%) and Mercedes (+18.1%). BYD is estimated to climb 166.5% to a record 14th position while Fiat (+71%) recovers at #15.
The new gen iX3 helps BMW to its best performance of the year.
Over in the models charts, the Peugeot 208 (-0.6%) repeats at #1 with 4.7% share vs. 4.5% so far this year. The Dacia Sandero (+4.5%) is only 24 sales lower in 2nd place. Meanwhile the Tesla Model Y (+835.7%) shoots up 19 spots on April to land in third place overall with 3% share, an outstanding result given we are not in an end of quarter month. At #4, the Renault Clio VI disappoints again with just 2.8% share, down from 3.7% in April and 4% in March. Are we witnessing a shock failure for the new generation of Renault’s star model? When adding the 5th generation (-84.3% to #19), the Clio nameplate only holds 4% share, in third place well below the 208 and Sandero. The Renault 5 (+100.6%) surges YoY but is down one rank on last month to #7, just as the new Renault Twingo IV is up to #36, the Renault 4 (+78.4%) down to #65 and the BMW iX3 (+18100%) up to #67.
Previous month: France April 2026: Stable market (-0.3%), BEVs up 41.8% to 26.2% share
One year ago: France May 2025: Volumes down -12.3%, BEV private sales down -58%
Full May 2026 Top 20 brands and Top 80 models below.
France May 2026 – brands:
| Pos | Brand | May-26 | % | /25 | Apr | 2026 | % | /25 | Pos | FY25 |
| 1 | Renault | 19,823 | 15.4% | – 10.9% | 1 | 118,326 | 17.7% | – 1.5% | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Peugeot | 15,933 | 12.4% | – 14.7% | 2 | 90,860 | 13.6% | – 10.9% | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | Dacia | 11,562 | 9.0% | – 2.9% | 3 | 52,705 | 7.9% | – 12.4% | 4 | 3 |
| 4 | Volkswagen | 8,825 | 6.9% | + 0.1% | 5 | 43,759 | 6.5% | – 3.4% | 5 | 5 |
| 5 | Citroen | 8,458 | 6.6% | – 7.6% | 4 | 53,415 | 8.0% | + 6.4% | 3 | 4 |
| 6 | Toyota | 7,653 | 6.0% | + 5.7% | 6 | 43,358 | 6.5% | – 9.7% | 6 | 6 |
| 7 | BMW | 5,806 | 4.5% | + 39.5% | 9 | 23,437 | 3.5% | + 0.2% | 7 | 7 |
| 8 | Tesla | 5,446 | 4.2% | + 655.3% | 21 | 21,220 | 3.2% | + 156.4% | 8 | 18 |
| 9 | Skoda | 4,563 | 3.6% | + 13.5% | 7 | 20,860 | 3.1% | + 7.0% | 9 | 8 |
| 10 | Audi | 3,811 | 3.0% | + 7.4% | 10 | 19,016 | 2.8% | + 5.8% | 10 | 9 |
| 11 | Mercedes | 3,725 | 2.9% | + 18.1% | 8 | 15,983 | 2.4% | + 6.5% | 11 | 11 |
| 12 | Opel | 2,560 | 2.0% | – 2.8% | 12 | 15,553 | 2.3% | + 13.8% | 12 | 15 |
| 13 | Hyundai | 2,511 | 2.0% | – 18.7% | 11 | 14,681 | 2.2% | – 16.0% | 13 | 10 |
| 14 | BYD (est) | 2,500 | 1.9% | + 166.5% | 16 | 8,420 | 1.3% | + 81.9% | 20 | 24 |
| 15 | Fiat | 2,496 | 1.9% | + 71.0% | 18 | 12,584 | 1.9% | + 58.9% | 15 | 20 |
| 16 | MG (est) | 2,463 | 1.9% | – 4.4% | 14 | 11,510 | 1.7% | + 7.4% | 17 | 14 |
| 17 | Mini | 2,124 | 1.7% | + 45.3% | 20 | 9,872 | 1.5% | + 6.7% | 19 | 17 |
| 18 | Nissan | 2,049 | 1.6% | + 0.6% | 15 | 10,358 | 1.5% | – 11.3% | 18 | 16 |
| 19 | Kia | 2,048 | 1.6% | – 15.3% | 13 | 12,574 | 1.9% | – 6.0% | 16 | 13 |
| 20 | Ford | 1,999 | 1.6% | – 36.0% | 17 | 12,823 | 1.9% | – 18.8% | 14 | 12 |
France May 2026 – models:
| Pos | Model | May-26 | % | /25 | Apr | 2026 | % | /25 | Pos | FY25 |
| 1 | Peugeot 208 | 6,024 | 4.7% | – 0.6% | 1 | 29,858 | 4.5% | – 9.3% | 1 | 2 |
| 2 | Dacia Sandero | 6,000 | 4.7% | + 4.5% | 2 | 24,986 | 3.7% | – 12.1% | 2 | 3 |
| 3 | Tesla Model Y | 3,874 | 3.0% | + 835.7% | 22 | 16,000 | 2.4% | + 183.1% | 8 | 15 |
| 4 | Renault Clio VI | 3,646 | 2.8% | new | 3 | 21,076 | 3.2% | new | 5 | 141 |
| 5 | Citroen C3 | 3,515 | 2.7% | – 14.0% | 4 | 23,392 | 3.5% | – 12.8% | 3 | 4 |
| 6 | Peugeot 2008 | 3,259 | 2.5% | – 33.3% | 5 | 21,470 | 3.2% | – 14.6% | 4 | 5 |
| 7 | Renault 5 | 2,947 | 2.3% | + 100.6% | 6 | 16,449 | 2.5% | + 27.3% | 6 | 7 |
| 8 | Peugeot 3008 | 2,812 | 2.2% | – 12.9% | 7 | 15,431 | 2.3% | – 16.7% | 9 | 6 |
| 9 | Dacia Duster III | 2,629 | 2.0% | – 19.8% | 10 | 13,069 | 2.0% | – 29.6% | 12 | 9 |
| 10 | Renault Captur | 2,371 | 1.8% | – 16.1% | 8 | 14,580 | 2.2% | – 16.0% | 10 | 8 |
| 11 | Toyota Yaris Cross | 2,357 | 1.8% | + 12.7% | 9 | 12,938 | 1.9% | – 13.8% | 13 | 11 |
| 12 | Citroen C3 Aircross II | 2,348 | 1.8% | + 19.0% | 14 | 13,221 | 2.0% | + 253.2% | 11 | 18 |
| 13 | VW Polo | 2,192 | 1.7% | + 7.5% | 23 | 8,518 | 1.3% | – 14.1% | 19 | 14 |
| 14 | Renault Symbioz | 2,147 | 1.7% | – 24.8% | 12 | 12,442 | 1.9% | – 16.3% | 15 | 12 |
| 15 | Toyota Yaris | 1,982 | 1.5% | – 18.2% | 11 | 12,218 | 1.8% | – 12.0% | 16 | 10 |
| 16 | Peugeot 308 | 1,972 | 1.5% | – 19.1% | 13 | 12,646 | 1.9% | – 7.9% | 14 | 13 |
| 17 | Renault Scenic V | 1,624 | 1.3% | + 56.8% | 15 | 10,634 | 1.6% | + 54.2% | 17 | 22 |
| 18 | Tesla Model 3 | 1,561 | 1.2% | + 423.8% | 95 | 5,153 | 0.8% | + 101.6% | 31 | 73 |
| 19 | Renault Clio V | 1,531 | 1.2% | – 84.3% | 16 | 16,161 | 2.4% | – 62.1% | 7 | 1 |
| 20 | BMW X1 | 1,460 | 1.1% | + 52.7% | 63 | 4,757 | 0.7% | – 1.6% | 35 | 40 |
| 21 | VW T-Roc II | 1,420 | 1.1% | new | 17 | 7,385 | 1.1% | new | 22 | 159 |
| 22 | Citroen C5 Aircross II | 1,411 | 1.1% | new | 19 | 9,252 | 1.4% | new | 18 | 99 |
| 23 | Dacia Bigster | 1,370 | 1.1% | + 12.9% | 20 | 7,266 | 1.1% | + 110.6% | 24 | 21 |
| 24 | Peugeot 5008 III | 1,323 | 1.0% | – 8.9% | 24 | 7,809 | 1.2% | + 2.6% | 20 | 17 |
| 25 | Renault Megane E-Tech | 1,289 | 1.0% | + 153.2% | 43 | 4,842 | 0.7% | + 42.6% | 34 | 50 |
| 26 | Opel Corsa | 1,248 | 1.0% | – 13.9% | 21 | 6,984 | 1.0% | – 9.4% | 25 | 26 |
| 27 | Renault Austral | 1,229 | 1.0% | – 9.6% | 26 | 7,329 | 1.1% | – 14.5% | 23 | 16 |
| 28 | Nissan Qashqai | 1,155 | 0.9% | + 39.0% | 18 | 6,035 | 0.9% | + 15.7% | 26 | 30 |
| 29 | Toyota C-HR II | 1,146 | 0.9% | + 31.4% | 30 | 7,465 | 1.1% | + 15.3% | 21 | 29 |
| 30 | Skoda Elroq | 1,126 | 0.9% | + 64.9% | 31 | 5,129 | 0.8% | + 194.3% | 32 | 58 |
| 31 | Dacia Jogger | 1,105 | 0.9% | – 15.6% | 29 | 4,619 | 0.7% | – 30.8% | 36 | 28 |
| 32 | Toyota Aygo X | 1,059 | 0.8% | + 31.9% | 25 | 5,889 | 0.9% | + 18.3% | 27 | 39 |
| 33 | VW ID.4 | 1,026 | 0.8% | + 178.8% | 28 | 5,542 | 0.8% | + 165.9% | 30 | 72 |
| 34 | BYD Atto 2 | 1,018 | 0.8% | + 4527.3% | 42 | 2,348 | 0.4% | + 769.6% | 78 | 200 |
| 35 | Hyundai Kona | 1,015 | 0.8% | + 16.1% | 27 | 5,640 | 0.8% | + 5.2% | 29 | 37 |
| 36 | Renault Twingo IV | 1,004 | 0.8% | new | 82 | 2,675 | 0.4% | new | 73 | 344 |
| 37 | BMW Série 1 | 985 | 0.8% | + 42.3% | 47 | 4,083 | 0.6% | – 24.0% | 46 | 33 |
| 38 | Mini Hatch | 975 | 0.8% | + 16.3% | 52 | 4,899 | 0.7% | + 1.5% | 33 | 35 |
| 39 | VW ID.3 | 912 | 0.7% | + 96.6% | 49 | 4,158 | 0.6% | + 20.1% | 44 | 55 |
| 40 | Fiat 600 | 902 | 0.7% | + 8.9% | 86 | 3,896 | 0.6% | – 3.0% | 50 | 59 |
| 41 | Skoda Fabia | 888 | 0.7% | + 0.9% | 39 | 4,271 | 0.6% | – 10.1% | 41 | 41 |
| 42 | Ford Puma | 883 | 0.7% | – 37.5% | 40 | 5,714 | 0.9% | – 13.6% | 28 | 19 |
| 43 | BMW iX1 | 870 | 0.7% | + 81.6% | 53 | 3,959 | 0.6% | + 60.1% | 48 | 47 |
| 44 | Mini Countryman | 845 | 0.7% | + 130.2% | 67 | 3,665 | 0.5% | + 46.8% | 51 | 61 |
| 45 | Hyundai Tucson | 831 | 0.6% | – 23.1% | 34 | 4,261 | 0.6% | – 22.7% | 42 | 23 |
| 46 | VW Golf | 830 | 0.6% | – 17.7% | 41 | 4,313 | 0.6% | – 15.9% | 40 | 32 |
| 47 | MG 3 | 812 | 0.6% | – 23.3% | 37 | 3,528 | 0.5% | – 4.5% | 52 | 42 |
| 48 | MG ZS | 782 | 0.6% | – 23.5% | 45 | 4,091 | 0.6% | – 12.5% | 45 | 34 |
| 49 | VW Tiguan III | 752 | 0.6% | – 37.6% | 50 | 4,226 | 0.6% | – 35.6% | 43 | 24 |
| 50 | Audi A3 | 749 | 0.6% | – 7.8% | 33 | 3,954 | 0.6% | + 20.1% | 49 | 45 |
| 51 | Audi Q4 | 735 | 0.6% | + 223.8% | 46 | 3,471 | 0.5% | + 114.4% | 54 | 68 |
| 52 | VW T-Cross | 721 | 0.6% | – 30.2% | 35 | 4,079 | 0.6% | – 21.3% | 47 | 31 |
| 53 | Seat Ibiza | 708 | 0.6% | + 8.1% | 56 | 2,891 | 0.4% | – 16.8% | 65 | 57 |
| 54 | Citroen C4 | 676 | 0.5% | – 39.0% | 32 | 4,617 | 0.7% | – 48.7% | 37 | 25 |
| 55 | Renault Espace | 670 | 0.5% | – 23.0% | 69 | 3,360 | 0.5% | – 14.3% | 55 | 51 |
| 56 | Mercedes CLA | 667 | 0.5% | + 285.5% | 38 | 3,256 | 0.5% | + 209.5% | 58 | 112 |
| 57 | Kia EV4 | 665 | 0.5% | new | 51 | 2,681 | 0.4% | new | 72 | 202 |
| 58 | Audi Q3 | 663 | 0.5% | + 215.7% | 57 | 3,328 | 0.5% | + 93.9% | 57 | 80 |
| 59 | Skoda Octavia | 648 | 0.5% | – 13.5% | 60 | 3,177 | 0.5% | – 11.8% | 59 | 48 |
| 60 | Ford Kuga | 592 | 0.5% | – 42.9% | 66 | 3,041 | 0.5% | – 37.8% | 61 | 38 |
| 61 | Fiat Grande Panda | 591 | 0.5% | n/a | 68 | 3,332 | 0.5% | n/a | 56 | 83 |
| 62 | Jeep Avenger | 585 | 0.5% | + 26.1% | 93 | 2,647 | 0.4% | – 6.4% | 75 | 63 |
| 63 | Renault Rafale | 585 | 0.5% | – 7.4% | 77 | 2,780 | 0.4% | – 30.0% | 68 | 54 |
| 64 | Xpeng G6 | 583 | 0.5% | + 195.9% | 74 | 2,012 | 0.3% | + 157.3% | 85 | 120 |
| 65 | Renault 4 | 571 | 0.4% | + 78.4% | 48 | 4,525 | 0.7% | + 903.3% | 38 | 64 |
| 66 | Suzuki Swift | 561 | 0.4% | – 35.4% | 36 | 4,321 | 0.6% | – 24.8% | 39 | 36 |
| 67 | BMW iX3 | 546 | 0.4% | + 18100.0% | 104 | 1,539 | 0.2% | + 697.4% | 92 | 252 |
| 68 | Fiat 500 | 540 | 0.4% | + 100.0% | 44 | 3,522 | 0.5% | + 49.9% | 53 | 82 |
| 69 | Audi A1 | 522 | 0.4% | – 20.1% | 75 | 2,827 | 0.4% | – 26.9% | 66 | 52 |
| 70 | Skoda Kamiq | 520 | 0.4% | – 18.2% | 71 | 2,815 | 0.4% | – 13.4% | 67 | 56 |
| 71 | Skoda Enyaq | 517 | 0.4% | + 129.8% | 58 | 1,971 | 0.3% | – 4.9% | 86 | 90 |
| 72 | Toyota Corolla | 506 | 0.4% | + 10.5% | 87 | 2,697 | 0.4% | – 33.8% | 71 | 53 |
| 73 | Mercedes Classe A | 503 | 0.4% | – 22.7% | 55 | 2,321 | 0.3% | – 26.1% | 81 | 49 |
| 74 | Nissan Juke | 495 | 0.4% | – 46.0% | 73 | 2,658 | 0.4% | – 38.2% | 74 | 44 |
| 75 | Cupra Formentor | 477 | 0.4% | – 29.5% | 72 | 2,367 | 0.4% | – 28.4% | 77 | 60 |
| 76 | Dacia Spring | 458 | 0.4% | + 24.8% | 70 | 2,765 | 0.4% | – 7.8% | 69 | 62 |
| 77 | Mercedes GLA | 458 | 0.4% | – 45.1% | 61 | 2,894 | 0.4% | – 20.6% | 64 | 43 |
| 78 | Opel Mokka | 450 | 0.4% | + 2.3% | 81 | 3,082 | 0.5% | + 2.9% | 60 | 66 |
| 79 | Kia Sportage | 439 | 0.3% | – 25.5% | 54 | 2,912 | 0.4% | – 11.3% | 63 | 46 |
| 80 | Cupra Born | 433 | 0.3% | – 1.4% | 64 | 2,326 | 0.3% | + 14.0% | 80 | 81 |
Source: PFA, AAA Data
This Post Has 4 Comments
It could be a flop.
New R5. ID Polo coming in October. Countries’ hostile policies towards combustion cars. Small cars sell well in only a few countries. The market is limited. More reasons.
I read about Tesla’s warehouses being full. Maybe some of the stock is being redirected to Europe. The demand for Teslas is enormous.
I’m curious about the results of the Xpeng G6 across Europe. With such an aggressive price and financing, the competition will have a big problem. The question is how many cars they will be able to produce in Austria and import from China, I don’t believe carmaker will make money on that. On the contrary, the X9 will be unsaleable.
Not good!
Market up, ALL premium brands up but ALL French brands take a beating.
Home brands typically benefit from higher loyalty and higher pricing, but the French buyers do the opposite.
Quite contraproductive for the local manufacturers. Elsewhere thing are different:
Toyota rules Japan, Hyundai-KIA Korea, VW Germany, Vinfast Viet-Nam, Skoda Czechia, Maruti India.
PS: Matt is quick! Even the French sites PFA and CCFA didn’t report May sales but Dr Gasnier did.
I don‘t think that the new gorgeous Clio VI will be a flop. But while the 208 is sold as Gas and Electric car, Renault now has 3-4 models in the same class. Clio, 5, 4 and the slightly smaller Twingo. It’s not surprising that there could be more sales segmentation.
Well said.
It’s too early to judge: According to Renault Clio VI production volume in Bursa is close to its peak.
Seen a (bad) example of ramp-up issues before with the Grande Panda in Kragujevac.
Some felt a flop was imminent but by now, the FIAT has found its footing.