The VW Santana 2000 is only 3,000 sales below the Santana in 1997. New vehicle sales in China accelerate their growth in 1997 at +11.9% year-on-year to 1,484,948 units. Brand leader Volkswagen (+19.8%) outraces the market to easily top the charts with over 270,000 sales. FAW Tianjin (+4%) follows but…
Opel Corsa * See the Top 20 best-selling models by clicking on the title! Many thanks to José * After two years of interruption by the Fiat Punto in 1995 and 1996, the Opel Corsa reclaims the pole position in the Portuguese models ranking in 1996 and ranks Number 1 for…
The Polo scores its first Top 10 finish just as Volkswagen is #1 for the first time in 30 years. * See the Top 40 All-brands and Top 50 models by clicking on the title * New car sales in Finland gain another 8.6% in 1997 to cross the 100.000…
Fiat Punto * See the Top 100 best-selling models by clicking on the title! Many thanks to Flavio/Marc * Thanks to aggressive scrappage schemes, the Italian car market is up a massive 39% this year to a record-breaking 2,402,363 units. The Fiat Punto also break records with 375,159 sales, up 31%…
1992 US spec Toyota Corolla * See the 1997 Top 28 best-selling models by clicking on 'Read more' at end of post! * The Toyota Corolla should be the best selling car in the world over the period with at least 900,000 units produced each year. The only official data…
Ford Mondeo * See the Top 30 best-selling models by clicking on the title! Many thanks to Florian * In 1997, the Ford Fiesta stays on top for the second year in a row, but it didn't look like it at the start of the year: boosted by its facelift,…
Holden Commodore * See the Top 50 best-selling models by clicking on the title! * Record year for the Australian new car market, up 11% on 1996 to 722,642 registrations, for the first time above 700,000 and beating the 695,856 units delivered in 1985. Both in a transition year with…
The Daewoo Leganza lands at #3 in South Korea in 1997. 1997 marks the largest decline so far this decade at -7.3% to 1.468.699 units. Hyundai (-10.8%) falls faster than te market and sees its share thaw to 46.9% but the big event this year is Daewoo (+23.7%) surging past…
The Skoda Felicia, actually an evolution of the 1987 Skoda Favorit, launches in October 1994 and replaces the Favorit atop the Czech Republic car sales for the next 3 years, reaching huge market shares, in all likeliness between 40% and 50%. More details about the Skoda Felicia here, more pictures: click…
Fiat Punto * See the Top 10 best-selling models by clicking on the title! * After leading for 4 months in 1995-1996, the Fiat Punto finally makes its mark over the European car market and puts an end to 14 years of uninterrupted domination by the VW Golf. The Fiat…
Suzuki takes the lead of the Hungarian brands ranking for the first time in 1997. * See the Top 35 All-brands ranking by clicking on the title * The Hungarian new car market edges up 7.4% in 1997 to 79.827 registrations. Seven years after the establishment of its new plant in Esztergom…
The Ford Windstar leaps up onto the Canadian podium in 1997. Finally a very dynamic year for new light vehicle sales in Canada, up a whopping 18.6% in 1997 to 1.393.899 units. Ford (+16.2%) almost matches the market and remains above 20% share for the 2nd straight year at 20.1%,…
Hyundai Accent * See the Top 7 best-selling models by clicking on the title! Many thanks to Erik and Bill * 162,030 new cars were sold in Greece in 1997, a healthy increase of 18% over 1996. The Hyundai Accent takes the lead of the models for the first time…
Renault 19 * See 'Read more' for the Top 10 best-selling models! Many thanks to Bruno for the data * While the Renault Megane has already replaced it in Europe, the Renault 19 manages to snap away from the VW Gol the title of best-selling car in Argentina in 1997…
Honda StepWGN * See the Top 30 best-selling models by clicking on the title! * 1997 is the 29th consecutive time the Toyota Corolla is the favourite model in Japan, with sales up 7% to 238,098. In second place the Nissan March is back up one spot and 9% year-on-year…