2017 (Q1) Switzerland: Best-Selling Car Brands and Models

At the start of 2017 Volkswagen remained the best-selling carmaker in Switzerland but the Skoda Octavia was the top-selling car model.

Ferrari 488 GTB at Geneva 2017

New passenger vehicle registrations in Switzerland during the first quarter of 2017 expanded by only 1.1% to 72,769 cars. Volkswagen remained the largest carmaker despite loosing market share. Mercedes-Benz and BMW were again the second and third best-selling car brands in Switzerland in 2017. The Skoda Octavia was the favorite car model of the Swiss during the first three months of 2017.

The Swiss New Car Market in 2017 (Q1)

New passenger vehicle registrations in Switzerland increased by a weak 1.1% to 72,769 cars during the first three months of 2017.

Sales of new 4×4 vehicles increased by a faster 9.8% to 34,050 cars – just below half of all new cars sold in Switzerland. Sales of diesel cars contracted by 2% to 27,789 cars. Electric car sales were up by 36.2% to 1,053 cars.

Best-Selling Car Brands in Switzerland in 2017 (Q1)

The following were the top 30 best-selling car marques in Switzerland during the first three months of 2017 according to Auto Schweiz:

Marque Q1/2017 Q1/2016 % Change
Total 72,769 71,957 1.1
1 Volkswagen 7,246 8,577 -15.5
2 Mercedes 6,336 5,682 11.5
3 BMW 5,489 5,655 -2.9
4 Skoda 4,731 4,999 -5.4
5 Audi 4,183 3,734 12
6 Opel 3,208 3,057 4.9
7 Renault 3,173 3,360 -5.6
8 Ford 3,089 2,974 3.9
9 Seat 2,931 2,002 46.4
10 Toyota 2,621 2,566 2.1
11 Fiat 2,534 1,838 37.9
12 Peugeot 2,475 2,714 -8.8
13 Nissan 2,213 2,090 5.9
14 Hyundai 2,046 2,410 -15.1
15 Dacia 1,894 1,354 39.9
16 Volvo 1,894 1,768 7.1
17 Mazda 1,872 2,499 -25.1
18 Suzuki 1,860 1,690 10.1
19 Citroën 1,566 1,649 -5
20 Subaru 1,245 1,219 2.1
21 MINI 1,187 970 22.4
22 Honda 1,062 1,332 -20.3
23 Porsche 976 1,046 -6.7
24 Land-Rover 930 1,056 -11.9
25 Kia 848 925 -8.3
26 Mitsubishi 808 852 -5.2
27 Jeep 715 646 10.7
28 Alfa Romeo 701 206 240.3
29 Smart 614 834 -26.4
30 Jaguar 343 228 50.4

Top-Selling Car Brands in Switzerland

Volkswagen remained the top-selling car brand in Switzerland during the first quarter of 2017 despite selling 15.5% fewer cars than a year ago. Mercedes-Benz in contrast increased sales by 11.5% to cut the gap to VW by more than 50%.

BMW and Skoda maintained their rank positions from a year ago despite weaker sales while a strong performance by Audi kept it as the fifth largest car brand in Switzerland during the first three months of 2017.

Opel increased sales by 5% to move ahead of Renault that had sales down by nearly 6%. Ford was again the 8th best-selling car brand in Switzerland.

Seat increased sales in Switzerland by nearly 50% to enter the top-ten list at 9th from 14th last year. Toyota was again the tenth largest car brand in Switzerland.

Peugeot slipped out of the top ten in Switzerland – down to 12th from 9th a year ago.

Alfa Romeo was the most-improved brand with sales up 240%. Alfa Romeo thus re-entered the top 30 list at 28th from 32nd. A strong performance by Jaguar allowed the British marque to improve one position.

DS (down 52%) and Lexus (down 33.3%) were the two brands dropping out of the top 30 list.

Best-Selling Car Models in Switzerland in 2017 (Q1)

The following were the top 20 best-selling car models in Switzerland during the first quarter of 2017 according to Auto Schweiz:

Marque Model Q1/2017
1 Skoda Octavia 2,517
2 VW Golf 1,852
3 Mercedes-Benz C-Klasse 1,222
4 VW Tiguan 1,187
5 VW Polo 1,151
6 VW T6 1,063
7 Fiat 500 1,012
8 Mercedes-Benz GLC-Klasse 984
9 Skoda Fabia 918
10 Opel Mokka 916
11 BMW 2er 912
12 BMW X1 911
13 Seat Leon 903
14 Dacia Sandero 825
15 Mercedes-Benz A-Klasse 820
16 Seat Ateca 816
17 Mini Cooper 815
18 Seat Alhambra 808
19 Hyundai Tucson 795
20 Nissan Qashqai 786

Exotic Cars in Switzerland in 2017 (Q1)

The Swiss new car market is highly competitive with Auto Schweiz listing more than 360 individual models sold during the first quarter of 2017. Exclusivity in Switzerland is hard to find. VW made it more difficult by taking the slow-selling Jetta off the Swiss market but the VW Beetle with 83 sold is as the 180th best-selling model clearly more exclusive than the Porsche 911 that came in at 120th.

Ferrari may be a better bet but the best-selling Ferrari 488 is with 39 registrations in Switzerland thus far this year the 230th most-popular car on the Swiss market – well ahead of the VW Scirocco with one sale. Ferrari sold four times as many LaFerraris.

The sales figures for a few more exotic models in Switzerland in 2017 according to Auto Schweiz:

Marque Model Q1/2017
Aston Martin DB11 29
Aston Martin DB9 1
Aston Martin Rapide 5
Aston Martin V12 Vantage 3
Aston Martin V8 Vantage 7
Aston Martin Vanquish 14
Aston Martin Vantage GT8 3
Bentley Bentayga 28
Bentley Continental GT 26
Bentley Flying Spur 15
Bentley Mulsanne 2
Ferrari 458 2
Ferrari 488 39
Ferrari California 16
Ferrari F12 5
Ferrari FF 1
Ferrari GTC4 Lusso 36
Ferrari La Ferrari 4
Lamborghini Aventador 6
Lamborghini Huracàn 14
Maserati Ghibli 73
Maserati GranCabrio 9
Maserati Granturismo 5
Maserati GT MC Stradale 1
Maserati Levante 171
Maserati Quattroporte 19
McLaren 540 1
McLaren 570 9
McLaren 675LT 3
Mercedes-Benz AMG GT 21
Porsche 911 187
Rolls Royce Dawn 3
Rolls Royce Ghost 1
Rolls Royce Wraith 5
VW Beetle 83
VW Scirocco 1

Source: auto-schweiz / ASTRA/MOFIS

About the author:

Henk Bekker

Henk Bekker is a freelance writer with over 20 years of experience in online writing. His best-selling cars website has been reporting car sales statistics since 2008 with classic car auction prices focusing on the most expensive automobiles sold at public auctions in the past decade. He also owns the travel websites European-Traveler.com and Lake Geneva Switzerland. Henk holds an MBA from Edinburgh Business School and an MSc in Finance from the University of London.