Volkswagen’s Golf was the top selling single car model in Europe in January, ahead of Peugeot’s 206 and 307, according to analysis by JATO Dynamics. VW was also the leading brand, ahead of Renault, Ford, Opel/Vauxhall and Peugeot.
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JATO said the lower-medium size car category’s “worrying” decline of 9.5% in 2003 continued in January, with a fall of 8.94% over the same month last year, despite the recent introduction of the new-generation Golf. The upper-medium segment is mirroring this sustained downward trend – 10.3% for all of 2003 and 8.23% in January.
Mini/midi MPVs [Multi-Purpose Vehicles or minivans], up 4.59% last year and 38.79% in December, recorded another massive year-on-year increase in January of 31.65%. The indications are that recent launches – the VW Touran, Ford C-Max and new-generation Renault Scénic – are expanding the segment’s share of the market and eroding the lower-medium car segment.
Sports cars came back strongly in 2003, up 11.44% over 2002, and an increase last month of 6.65% seems to support ongoing strong performance. However, December 2003 saw an increase of 62.47% following a wave of new model introductions in a very short period, so whether real growth is achieved remains uncertain.
SUVs were up 6.65% in January – compared with 13.43% for the whole of 2003 – but showed the relative strength of non-core models over the traditional volume sellers.
The European market share taken by mini car models fell heavily in 2003 (10.6%) but recovered significantly year on year in January to 13.96%. A significant factor was the recent launch of Fiat’s new Panda (up 80.13% to claim 18% of the segment) and the Citroën C2 (almost 10% of the segment).
Other segment highlights cited by JATO Dynamics for January 2004:
Mini – Asian contenders excel (Daihatsu Cuore/Charade +137.6%, Suzuki Alto +50.33%, Hyundai Atos/Amica + 39.01%)
Supermini – ageing models hang on (Peugeot 206 leads [recently facelifted] Fiat Punto and Renault Clio)
Lower-medium – Peugeot 307 heads off Ford Focus, Opel/Vauxhall Astra
Premium lower-medium – segment holds steady, dominated by Audi A3 (42% share)
Upper-medium –VW Passat leads Ford Mondeo, Opel/Vauxhall Vectra; Toyota Avensis sales up 141%
Premium upper-medium – Segment 14.49% down but Honda Accord sales rise 82.66%
Executive – Segment 2.95% down; redesigned BMW 5-series sales up 53.7% though still trailing Mercedes-Benz E-class
High-luxury – Segment 5.46% down; Mercedes-Benz S-class leads BMW 7-series and Audi A8
Mini/midi-MPV – Longtime leader Renault Scénic dominates (almost 25% share) but new VW Touran and Ford C-Max each achieve 10% share
MPV – 16.14% down despite 10.6% growth in 2003; Renault Espace leads
Sports – Mercedes-Benz CLK leads BMW Z4
SUV – Toyota RAV4 leads Nissan X-Trail
