During the first half of 2014, Volkswagen remained the top-selling car manufacturer and brand in the EU. The VW Golf was Europeβs favorite car model.
The first six months of 2014 saw the European car market expanding by 6.2% allowing almost all manufacturers to increase car sales. Volkswagen easily remained the market leader in the EU as the strongest manufacturer and brand. The French conglomerates PSA and Renault were again second and third but Ford overtook the GM Group. Ford was the second most-popular car brand in Europe behind Volkswagen followed by Opel / Vauxhall, Renault and Peugeot. The Volkswagen Golf remained Europeβs favorite car model during the fist semester of 2014.
New passenger vehicle registrations in the European Union and EFTA countries grew by 6.2% to 6,851,552 cars during the first half of 2014.
Best-Selling Car Manufacturers in Europe in 2014 (First Half)
The top-selling car manufacturing groups in the European Union and EFTA countries during the first half of 2014 according to new passenger vehicle registration statistics released by the ACEA were:
(First Half) 2014 | (First Half) 2013 | % Share 2014 | % Share 2013 | % Change | |
ALL BRANDS** | 6β851β552 | 6β452β512 | Β 100 | Β 100 | 6.2 |
VW Group | 1β717β087 | 1β603β470 | 25.1 | 24.9 | 7.1 |
VOLKSWAGEN | 830β148 | 808β666 | 12.1 | 12.5 | 2.7 |
AUDI | 384β574 | 364β349 | 5.6 | 5.6 | 5.6 |
SEAT | 170β464 | 152β123 | 2.5 | 2.4 | 12.1 |
SKODA | 302β657 | 253β008 | 4.4 | 3.9 | 19.6 |
Others (1) | 29β244 | 25β324 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 15.5 |
PSA Group | 753β617 | 716β676 | 11 | 11.1 | 5.2 |
PEUGEOT | 420β422 | 392β308 | 6.1 | 6.1 | 7.2 |
CITROEN | 333β195 | 324β368 | 4.9 | 5 | 2.7 |
RENAULT Group | 663β063 | 555β831 | 9.7 | 8.6 | 19.3 |
RENAULT | 467β994 | 411β563 | 6.8 | 6.4 | 13.7 |
DACIA | 195β069 | 144β268 | 2.8 | 2.2 | 35.2 |
FORD | 508β327 | 477β518 | 7.4 | 7.4 | 6.5 |
GM Group | 508β075 | 512β076 | 7.4 | 7.9 | -0.8 |
OPEL/VAUXHALL | 473β082 | 436β941 | 6.9 | 6.8 | 8.3 |
CHEVROLET | 34β789 | 74β925 | 0.5 | 1.2 | -53.6 |
GM (US) | 204 | 210 | 0 | 0 | -2.9 |
FIAT Group | 419β630 | 410β031 | 6.1 | 6.4 | 2.3 |
FIAT | 324β735 | 318β800 | 4.7 | 4.9 | 1.9 |
LANCIA/CHRYSLER | 40β870 | 41β157 | 0.6 | 0.6 | -0.7 |
ALFA ROMEO | 32β874 | 36β240 | 0.5 | 0.6 | -9.3 |
JEEP | 16β348 | 11β370 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 43.8 |
Others (2) | 4β803 | 2β464 | 0.1 | 0 | 94.9 |
BMW Group | 417β689 | 407β392 | 6.1 | 6.3 | 2.5 |
BMW | 347β154 | 328β340 | 5.1 | 5.1 | 5.7 |
MINI | 70β535 | 79β052 | 1 | 1.2 | -10.8 |
DAIMLER | 363β914 | 356β560 | 5.3 | 5.5 | 2.1 |
MERCEDES | 332β409 | 320β359 | 4.9 | 5 | 3.8 |
SMART | 31β505 | 36β201 | 0.5 | 0.6 | -13 |
TOYOTA Group | 290β006 | 271β603 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 6.8 |
TOYOTA | 275β959 | 261β227 | 4 | 4 | 5.6 |
LEXUS | 14β047 | 10β376 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 35.4 |
NISSAN | 249β787 | 227β085 | 3.6 | 3.5 | 10 |
HYUNDAI | 219β617 | 224β977 | 3.2 | 3.5 | -2.4 |
KIA | 185β882 | 176β234 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 5.5 |
VOLVO CAR CORP. | 123β901 | 111β165 | 1.8 | 1.7 | 11.5 |
MAZDA | 92β430 | 75β065 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 23.1 |
SUZUKI | 86β876 | 76β878 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 13 |
JAGUAR LAND ROVER Group | 77β917 | 74β200 | 1.1 | 1.1 | 5 |
LAND ROVER | 62β365 | 59β373 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 5 |
JAGUAR | 15β552 | 14β827 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 4.9 |
HONDA | 72β264 | 78β287 | 1.1 | 1.2 | -7.7 |
MITSUBISHI | 45β719 | 38β651 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 18.3 |
(1) VW Group: VW βotherβ include Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, and Β Porsche | |||||
(2) FIAT Group: FIAT βotherβ include Dodge, Ferrari, Maserati |
Source:Β ACEA
The Volkswagen Group easily remained Europeβs largest passenger vehicle manufacturer and again increased market share to just over a quarter of the European new car market. The groupβs two top-selling marques β Volkswagen and Audi β both underperformed the broader market but Skoda and Seat registered strong sales increases.
The French PSA and Renault groups both had sales increases with the Renault Group alone accounting for nearly a quarter of all car sales increases in Europe during the first half of 2014.
Ford overtook the GM Group for fourth place this year. The GM Group was the only manufacturer to record negative growth β this is largely due to Chevrolet withdrawing from the European market at the end of the year.
The Fiat, BMW and Daimler groups all had weak below market average growth. The German luxury car makers were mostly hit by declines in sales of its Mini and Smart brands β both brands heavily rely on single models, which are being replaced this year.
Best-Selling Car Brands in Europe in 2014 (Half Year)
The top-20 best-selling car marques in the EU and EFTA during the first six months of 2014 according to the ACEA were:
Rank | Manufacturer | 2014 | 2013 | % Change |
1 | VOLKSWAGEN | 830β148 | 808β666 | 2.7 |
2 | FORD | 508β327 | 477β518 | 6.5 |
3 | OPEL/VAUXHALL | 473β082 | 436β941 | 8.3 |
4 | RENAULT | 467β994 | 411β563 | 13.7 |
5 | PEUGEOT | 420β422 | 392β308 | 7.2 |
6 | AUDI | 384β574 | 364β349 | 5.6 |
7 | BMW | 347β154 | 328β340 | 5.7 |
8 | CITROEN | 333β195 | 324β368 | 2.7 |
9 | MERCEDES | 332β409 | 320β359 | 3.8 |
10 | FIAT | 324β735 | 318β800 | 1.9 |
11 | SKODA | 302β657 | 253β008 | 19.6 |
12 | TOYOTA | 275β959 | 261β227 | 5.6 |
13 | NISSAN | 249β787 | 227β085 | 10 |
14 | HYUNDAI | 219β617 | 224β977 | -2.4 |
15 | DACIA | 195β069 | 144β268 | 35.2 |
16 | KIA | 185β882 | 176β234 | 5.5 |
17 | SEAT | 170β464 | 152β123 | 12.1 |
18 | VOLVO CAR CORP. | 123β901 | 111β165 | 11.5 |
19 | MAZDA | 92β430 | 75β065 | 23.1 |
20 | SUZUKI | 86β876 | 76β878 | 13 |
Source:Β ACEA
There were no changes in the order of the top-10 best-selling car brands in Europe during the first half of 2014 compared to 2013. Volkswagen underperformed the broader market, Fordβs growth was in line with the market average while Opel / Vauxhall for once outperformed. Renault was the most improved top brand adding more than 50,000 cars.
Audi, BMW and Mercedes continue to increase sales but below the market average. All three German premium brands mostly outperformed when the broader market was shrinking in recent years but have been lacking in recent months.
Lower down on the list, Skoda grew by nearly a fifth (50,000 cars) to overtake Toyota. Dacia had similar unit increases and moved up two positions. Mazda and Suzuki replaced Mini and Honda on the top-20 list. Hyundai was the only top-20 brand with a decrease in sales in Europe during the first half of 2014.
The VW Golf followed by the Ford Fiesta and Renault Clio were the most-popular car models in Europe during the first half of 2014.