2016 (Q3) France: Best-Selling Car Manufacturers, Brands and Models

Renault Scenic at Geneva 2016The top-selling carmaker in France during the first three quarters of 2016 was again the PSA Group with Renault the top brand and the Clio favorite model. New passenger vehicle registrations in France increased by 5.7% to just over 1.5 million cars during the first nine months of 2016.

The French New Vehicle Market in 2016 (Q1)

During the first nine months of 2016, new passenger vehicle registrations in France increased by 5.7% to 1,502,457 cars. The total motorized new vehicle market expanded by 6.3% to 1,802,482 vehicles with light commercial vehicle sales increasing by nearly 10%.

Although diesel remained the best-selling engine type for cars in France, diesel cars share of the market shrunk to 52.5% from 58% during the first nine months of 2015. Petrol driven cars increased market share from 38% to 43.5%.

Fewer hybrid cars were registered during the first three quarters of 2016 compared to last year: 41,086 (2.73% share) against 43,576 (3.07%) in 2015.

Electric car sales in France during the first nine months of 2016 increased to 16,091 from 11,779 a year ago.

Best-Selling Car Manufacturing Groups in France in 2016 (Q3)

The top car manufacturing groups in France during the first nine months of 2016 according to new vehicle registration data released by the CCFA were:

Q1-3/2016 Q3/2015 % Change
Total Market 1,502,457 1,421,440 5.7
French 816,188 776,360 5.1
Imported 686,269 645,080 6.4
Manufacturers:
PSA Group 426,637 420,747 1.4
Peugeot 254,680 246,454 3.3
Citroen 149,278 151,732 -1.6
DS 22,679 22,561 0.5
RENAULT Group 388,761 354,795 9.6
Renault 303,637 280,148 8.4
Dacia 85,124 74,647 14.0
VW Group 188,883 183,174 1.1
Volkswagen 105,243 108,759 -3.2
Audi 47,091 42,938 9.7
Skoda 17,309 15,754 9.9
Seat 15,421 15,634 -1.4
Porsche 3,708 3,676 0.9
BMW Group 63,291 54,544 16.0
BMW 44,385 38,306 15.9
Mini 18,895 16,232 16.4
FORD Group 60,543 61,436 -1.5
TOYOTA Group 59,848 56,021 6.8
Toyota 56,158 6.3
FCA Group 59,108 53,080 11.4
Fiat 45,827 40,205 14.0
Jeep 7,544 6,388 18.1
Alfa Romeo 4,969 4,625 7.4
Lancia 163 1,313 -87.6
NISSAN Group 54,565 57,336 -4.8
Nissan 52,090 56,480 -7.8
GM Group 52,281 48,295 8.3
Opel 52,162 48,184 8.3
Chevrolet 92 96
DAIMLER Group 47,893 43,333 10.5
Mercedes-Benz 41,737 38,027 9.8
Smart 6,156 5,306 16.0
HYUNDAI Group 45,084 38,665 16.6
Kia 24,845 21,670 14.7
Hyundai 20,239 16,995 19.1
VOLVO Group 11086 9849 12.6

Top-Selling Carmakers in France in 2016 (Q3)

The PSA Group remained the largest carmaker in France during the first nine months of 2016. However, sales of the PSA Group increased by a modest 1.4% with sales of Citroen down in an expanding market. DS sales were up by only half a percentage point while Peugeot’s 3.3% increase was only about half the growth of the broader market.

The Renault Group performed markedly better with sales up nearly 10% for the group with Renault branded sales up 8% and Dacia sales up a strong 14%. Renault remained by far the top-selling car brand in France.

The Volkswagen Group remained the strongest foreign car manufacturer in France during the first three quarters of 2016 but with sales increasing only 1.1% lost market share. Volkswagen brand sales were down by 3.2% but sales of Audi and Skoda increased by nearly 10%.

Sales of the BMW Group in France increased by 16% for both BMW and Mini brands. The BMW Group thus moved ahead of Ford, Nissan and Toyota.

Ford slipped behind BMW in France with weaker sales – only Nissan performed worse. Both the Toyota and FCA Groups overtook the Nissan Group. Fiat and Jeep sales were much improved while even Alfa Romeo outperformed the broader market. Nissan was the worst performing car manufacturing group and brand in France thus far this year.

Sales of the GM Group – now basically just Opel – in France increased by 8.3% during the first nine months of 2016.

Sales of the Daimler Group in France increased by more than 10% with Mercedes-Benz sales up nearly 10% and Smart sales up 16%.

The Hyundai Group was the most-improved carmaker in France thus far this year with Hyundai (19%) the most-improved brand.

Best-Selling Car Brands in France in 2016 (Q1-3)

The 20 top-selling car marques in France during the first nine months of 2016 according to the CCFA were:

Marque Q1-3/2016 Q1-3/2015 % Change
1 Renault 303,637 280,148 8.4
2 Peugeot 254,680 246,454 3.3
3 Citroen 149,278 151,732 -1.6
4 Volkswagen 105,243 108,759 -3.2
5 Dacia 85,124 74,647 14.0
6 Ford 60,543 61,436 -1.5
7 Toyota 56,158 52,819 6.3
8 Opel 52,162 48,184 8.3
9 Nissan 52,090 56,480 -7.8
10 Audi 47,091 42,938 9.7
11 Fiat 45,827 40,205 14.0
12 BMW 44,385 38,306 15.9
13 Mercedes-Benz 41,737 38,027 9.8
14 Kia 24,845 21,670 14.7
15 DS 22,679 22,561 0.5
16 Hyundai 20,239 16,995 19.1
17 Mini 18,895 16,232 16.4
18 Skoda 17,309 15,754 9.9
19 Seat 15,421 15,634 -1.4
20 Volvo 11,086 9,849 12.6

There were very few changes in the rank order of the top 20 best-selling car brands in France during the first three quarters of 2016. The order of the top six brands remained unchanged despite half of these brands selling fewer cars than a year ago. Citroen, VW and Ford all had weaker sales in France in 2016 compared to a year ago.

However, Nissan with sales down 7.8% was by far the weakest performer in France during the first three quarters of 2016. Nissan slipped two rank positions allowing both Toyota and Opel to each improve one position each.

The only other rank order change was Kia and DS swapping places.

Best-Selling Car Models in France in 2016 (Q3)

The top ten best-selling car models in France during the first nine months of 2016 according to the CCFA were:

Make & Model Q1-3/2016 Q1-3/2015 % Market Share
1 Renault Clio IV 80,785 81,099 5.4
2 Peugeot 208 74,727 66,944 5.0
3 Peugeot 308 II 58,951 57,005 3.9
4 Renault Captur 54,661 53,840 3.6
5 Peugeot 2008 50,640 46,966 3.4
6 Dacia Sandero 44,113 34,703 2.9
7 Citroën C3 II 41,317 42,291 2.7
8 Citroën C4 II Picasso 32,263 34,280 2.1
9 Renault Twingo III 31,274 34,291 2.1
10 Renault Mégane IV 31,246 2.1

The rank order of the top five best-selling cars in France during the first three quarters of 2016 remained unchanged from a year ago. The Renault Clio remained the favorite car of the French although fewer Clios were sold than a year ago. In contrast, the Peugeot 208, 308, 2008 and Renault Captur all increased sales.

Dacia sold 10,000 more Sanderos in France during the first nine months of 2016 compared to a year ago allowing Renault’s budget brand car to move up from eighth to sixth. The Citroen C3 slipped on place.

The Citroen C4 Picasso improved from 10th a year ago while the Renault Twingo remained in ninth place.

The Renault Mégane re-entered the top ten while the Renault Scénic III slipped from seventh a year ago to 14th. Sales of both cars were affected by model changes.

The VW Polo was again the top imported car model in France at 11th place while the Toyota Yaris (17th) was the favorite Japanese model.