2019 (Full Year) France: Best-Selling Car Manufacturers and Brands

In 2019 (full year), the PSA Group remained the largest carmaker in France while Renault was the top-selling brand.

In 2019, the PSA Group was again the largest car manufacturing group in France followed by the Renault and Volkswagen groups. Renault was the top-selling car brand followed by Peugeot, Citroen, Volkswagen, and Dacia. New passenger vehicle registrations in France in 2019 increased by 1.9% to 2,214,279 cars. This was the highest number since 2010 – see 2019 France New Car Market Overview for more details.

Latest French Car Sales Statistics — 2023: Market Overview, Brands, Models; 2022, 2021, 2020.

Best-Selling Car Manufacturers in France in 2019

In 2019, full calendar year, the top-selling carmakers in France were as follows according to the CCFA:

Manufacturer	2019	2018	% Change
French Brands	1,257,843	1,246,915	0.90
PSA GROUP	708,438	698,985	1.40
Citroen	235,110	213,844	9.90
DS	26,845	24,004	11.80
Peugeot	379,582	389,518	-2.60
Opel	66,901	71,619	-6.60
RENAULT GROUP	549,283	547,704	0.30
Renault	407,134	406,222	0.20
Dacia	138,977	140,326	-1.00
Alpine	3,172	1,156	174.40

Manufacturer	2019	2018	% Change
Foreign Brands	956,436	926,566	3.20
BMW GROUP	85,919	84,931	1.20
BMW	58,751	57,537	2.10
Mini	27,158	27,378	-0.80
DAIMLER GROUP	80,708	73,254	10.20
Mercedes-Benz	70,214	65,808	6.70
Smart	10,494	7,446	40.90
FCA GROUP	87,566	100,356	-12.70
Alfa Romeo	3,937	8,332	-52.70
Fiat	71,666	78,226	-8.40
Jeep	11,541	13,191	-12.50
FORD	78,838	82,633	-4.60
HYUNDAI GROUP	85,026	77,855	9.20
Hyundai	39,970	35,542	12.50
Kia	45,056	42,313	6.50
MITSUBISHI	7,207	4,879	47.70
NISSAN	42,313	59,606	-29.00
SUZUKI	30,758	27,241	12.90
TOYOTA GROUP	108,888	103,387	5.30
Lexus	7,158	6,101	17.30
Toyota	101,730	97,286	4.60
VOLKSWAGEN GROUP	286,096	259,268	10.30
Audi	57,533	51,582	11.50
Porsche	5,572	4,567	22.00
Seat	37,148	31,219	19.00
Skoda	36,498	31,423	16.20
VW brand	149,105	140,313	6.30
VOLVO	21,696	18,349	18.20
TATA GROUP	11,439	11,383	0.50
Jaguar	3,561	4,580	-22.20
Land Rover	7,878	6,803	15.80

Top-Selling Carmakers in France in 2019

The PSA Group remained by far the largest carmaker in France in 2019, although sales increased slightly below market average. Citroen and DS increased sales strongly in France in 2019 while sales of the larger Peugeot brand were weaker and Opel continued to struggle. Opel should be helped in 2020 by the launch of the new Corsa – the first major Opel based on a PSA platform.

The Renault Group also lost market share with sales slightly weaker in France in 2019. Sales of Renault were flat while Dacia sales were down by 1%. The small Alpine brand showed stellar growth mostly due to the cars only becoming available during the latter part of 2018.

The Volkswagen Group remained by far the largest foreign carmaker in France in 2019 with all the larger brands in the group performing well. Volkswagen brand was the largest foreign car brand in France. VW sales increased by 6% while Porsche, Audi, Seat, and Skoda all increasing sales by double-digits.

The Daimler Group also performed well with Mercedes-Benz sales up while Smart, which is due to change to electric cars only during 2020, one of the most-improved brands in France in 2019.

Most of the foreign carmaking groups recorded increased sales in France in 2019 with the noticeable exception of Nissan and the FCA Group. Nissan was the worst-performing major brand with sales down by nearly a third.

The FCA Group, which announced at the end of 2019 a merger with PSA, also had weaker sales in France in 2019. All three largest brands in the group had weaker sales with Alfa Romeo sales down by over 50%.

Best-Selling Car Brands in France in 2019

The 20 top-selling car brands in France in 2019 were as follows:

	Manufacturer	2019	2018	% Change
1	Renault	407,134	406,222	0.20
2	Peugeot	379,582	389,518	-2.60
3	Citroen	235,110	213,844	9.90
4	VW	149,105	140,313	6.30
5	Dacia	138,977	140,326	-1.00
6	Toyota	101,730	97,286	4.60
7	Ford	78,838	82,633	-4.60
8	Fiat	71,666	78,226	-8.40
9	Mercedes-Benz	70,214	65,808	6.70
10	Opel	66,901	71,619	-6.60
11	BMW	58,751	57,537	2.10
12	Audi	57,533	51,582	11.50
13	Kia	45,056	42,313	6.50
14	Nissan	42,313	59,606	-29.00
15	Hyundai	39,970	35,542	12.50
16	Seat	37,148	31,219	19.00
17	Skoda	36,498	31,423	16.20
18	Suzuki	30,758	27,241	12.90
19	Mini	27,158	27,378	-0.80
20	DS	26,845	24,004	11.80

Top-Selling Car Brands in France in 2019

Renault, Peugeot, and Citroen were again the top three best-selling car brands in France in 2019. Renault sales were flat and Peugeot sales were slightly weaker. In contrast, Citroen was the best-performing top-ten brand in France in 2019 with sales up by 9.9%.

Volkswagen gained fourth place from Dacia with the German carmaker gaining market share while Dacia sales were weaker. Toyota increased sales in France to over 100,000 cars but maintained sixth place. Ford and Fiat maintained their relative rank positions despite weaker sales.

Mercedes-Benz moved into ninth place in France in 2019 at the expense of Opel that had weaker sales.

BMW, Audi, and Kia each moved up one rank position due to the very weak performance of Nissan. Of the top 30 car brands in France in 2019, only Alfa Romeo performed worst.

Hyundai maintained 15th place while Seat, the best-performing top-20 brand, swopped rank positions with sister brand Skoda. Suzuki moved ahead of Mini. DS maintained its 20th position.

The top-selling car models in France in 2019 were again the Peugeot 208 and Renault Clio – sales of both models were influenced by model changes during 2019.

New passenger vehicle registrations in France in 2019 increased by 1.9% to 2,214,279 cars – see 2019 France New Car Market Overview for more details.

Latest French Car Sales Statistics — 2023: Market Overview, Brands, Models; 2022, 2021, 2020.