PSA LCV's Sales By Model : 2013

The Partner/Berlingo (Peugeot shown).


Light commercial vehicles are an interesting area of vehicle making. Some are purchased for private use, though fashion and modern style are secondary to practicality. Often manufacturers share them to save on cost, and because of that they are reasonably profitable. Both Peugeot and Citroën do the same model under their own name.

PSA's biggest selling

Toyota UK Sales By Model : 2013

The Avensis. They really are a sound car (sold in NZ too).


From 2002 to 2009 inclusive, Toyota exceeded 100,000 sales in the UK. From 2010 onward, that number hasn't been reached. The difference is that Toyota was getting up around 5% share but is now in the 4% region. Why is that?

For a start the Corolla (now Auris) is tracking about 7,000 short of back then, and the Avensis is only a

Citroën Worldwide Car Sales By Model : 2013

100k C4 Picassos were sold in 2013. 


Citroën managed a slight increase in 2013, after an 11.4% drop in 2012. By combining both Citroën and Peugeot car sales, you find Citroën's share has increased from 40% in 2011, 42.5% in '12 and now 45%.

I think years ago when Peugeot acquired Citroën, one of the brands should have been a mass market brand and the other gone more upmarket. That didn't

Peugeot Worldwide Car Sales By Model : 2013

208 GTi. You need the excitement in the range...


Everyone knows that Peugeot is doing it tough at the moment. Under-utilised factories in France and a product line up that is confusing to anyone not familiar to the brand. Keeping older models running once replaced doesn't help the perception of clutter. In summary, it seems to be a company falling behind.

That said, the recent injection of

VW LCV Production : 2013

The Transporter/Caravelle.


VW also make light commercial vehicles as well as trucks. I won't go as far as HCVs, but LCVs are part of many people's lives. Some even are used as private transport. So what was 2013 like for production of such vehicles?







The Caddy.

The Transporter is a multi purpose medium sized van that includes the Caravelle MPV. It amounts to just over a third of

Bentley/Lamborghini Production : 2013

The new Flying Spur flying out of showrooms.


These are two of the halo marques that VW own, both have greatly increased sales in the time that they have been part of the VW Group. Bentley is being produced in record numbers, and Lamborghini one of it's better years.

Firstly, Bentley. Three models make up the range and two variants with the Continental GT. The Flying Spur was updated for 2013

Porsche Production by Model: 2013

The Cayenne. Sales are not to be sneezed at.


Porsche has joined the VW stable and production numbers are coming through. I may have been able to go back into Porsche figures as a stand alone marque, but they were April to March I seem to remember so wouldn't align with VW calendar ones.

The unthinkable has happened and half of Porsche production is for an SUV. When the smaller Macan gets

SEAT Production By Model : 2013

The Ibiza looks sharp and sporty. Production was down in 2013


SEAT went rather well in 2013, production up nearly 10% was strong. To understanding the make is difficult for me as they are not sold in NZ. They seem to have a slightly sporty, youthful image but it hasn't worked that well. VW hopes for 500,000 SEAT sales by 2018. From what I can gather:

The Ibiza is a hatchback/estate car which

Škoda Production By Model : 2013

The Rapid is actually a hatch. Very roomy, value priced but lacks refinement.


Škoda has been slowly improving its image and sales over the years. That said, I have to say that it isn't as successful as I thought it may be by now. There are many areas of the world that the brand is not sold in. It relies mainly on Europe and China. For some reason Škoda didn't grow in China despite sales going

Audi Production By Model : 2013

The A4. It sounds like copy paper, I know.


VW has worked hard with Audi to overtake BMW and Mercedes in sales volume. That is still yet to happen but one suspects it is only a matter of time. What difference will that make? Bragging rights it seems, as such things are important to some people. The BMW brand should retain it's top spot for 2014 by about 100,000  units over Audi, who in turn

BMW Group Regional Sales : 2009-13

I can't say I find German styling good looking. 


Things are shifting in car sales. Europe has slipped of late and Asia has more than filled the shortfall. Premium makes have not suffered the same but the trends are there to see, even over the few years shown here. The marques included here are BMW, MINI and Rolls Royce. 761.9 equals 761,900.

Since 2009, BMW Group sales in Europe have

VW Brand Production By Model : 2013

The Magotan isn't a Latin dance, but a Passat variant. Now you know.


I would rather show sales but this is how VW shares the data. It would be very similar to sales anyway. The VW brand managed a 2.6% increase in production for 2013. The green shading shows models that went up and yellow for the downside.

The problem with any such list is presenting it with allowance for what is essentially

Rolls Royce Worldwide Sales By Model: 2013

The Phantom saloon model, the Series II came out in 2012.


The designers who work at Rolls Royce must surely enjoy the relative freedom of working on cars with emphasis on quality rather than cost. Despite the upmarket price they also sell well, showing that there is strong demand for premium products in whatever field they exist.



Phantom Drophead Coupé. Nice summer's evening, top down....

MINI Brand Worldwide Sales By Model: 2013

MINI owners do love their cars..apparently


BMW's MINI brand had a year that little actually happened. True, the Paceman arrived, but didn't cause too much of a splash. However, the new MINI is arriving in dealers and that will buoy things along for 2014. It could be said that MINI held up well with reduced deliveries late in 2013 as the new model was prepared for.

The Oxford plant in the UK

BMW Brand Worldwide Sales By Model: 2013

3-Series the brand's big hitter


BMW had a good 2013, with a 7.5% increase. The chart below shows cars with green shading and SUVs with yellow. The only models to do poorly were the ill-conceived X6 and aging Z4, both suffering a double digit fall. The 3/4 Series did the best and is the mainstay of the marque. If you take SUVs away, the '3' represents 43.2% of BMW brand car sales.

The i3 is

Latvia Car/LCV Sales By Model Top 50 : 2013

The Ford Focus moves up into 2nd ...


When a nation has car models that are local brands, they dominate lists like this. Latvia imports its cars, so the variety stands out. Models that are German owned are the most popular in the top 50, while US ones are noticeable by their scarcity. As the list includes LCVs, the odd model pops up reflecting that.



... while the Toyota Auris doubles it

Latvia Car/LCV Sales By Brand : 2013

Riga the capital city


Latvia most recently got its independence in 1991, with the end of the Soviet era. It lies between Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south, the three nations making up the Baltic States.

It's car and Light Commercial sales were down slightly at just under 1% but 2014 is already showing signs of strong growth. Green highlights brand that increased.

RR Evoque Sales By Nation : 2013

An amazing stance


If this subject seems familiar, it's because I did it a couple of weeks ago. I wasn't that happy with how I presented it, so here it is in improved form. I have for one thing changed the colour coding to regions rather than increase/decrease. I also put China here, which is the biggest guess, along with the biggest market.

I have tried to put together a picture of how the

A Site I Recommend For Car Sales Data

I am not one to promote websites unless they offer something of high quality and accuracy. They also need to offer a goodly amount of free data. It also helps if they are open, friendly and quick to respond to enquiries. In all of those things, I find Focus2Move ticks the boxes. It was founded by Carlo Simongini, who is still a managing partner there.

The difference with what I do is apparent

UK CV Production : 1950 - 2013

Commercial vehicles are a section of the car industry that is overlooked by most. Understandable as we drive cars. So trucks and buses are simply large road users that block our view ahead and go slower than we would like. Basically they are necessary nuisances. However, they are an essential part of society in shipping both goods and people around.

After the Second World War, UK industry

Renault In Asia Top 12 Nations: 2007-13

Samsung SM5. This young lady seems to have 
misplaced her key. Embarassing.


Renault / Samsung are the two brands that sell in Asia for the Renault Group. It is not a strong area for them, with growth in most markets. The area where sales have suffered is the Samsung brand in Korea, nearly halving since 2007. The belated entry into China has gone well, while still a long way to go. Australia

Renault In Middle East / 14 Nations: 2007-13

Renault in Iran stopped trading there due to international embargo


The Renault / Dacia presence in the Middle East for cars/LCVs is broad but not that deep. Iran has been the main market but it is now suffering there due to political issues. Israel is going the right way and Saudi Arabia is increasing very well. Dubai and Abu Dhabi are both part of the UAE, but listed separate here. Syria's

BMW's MINI Lunacy To Be Checked

The MINI Coupe. Interesting but too extreme to be a large seller


BMW chases niches in the car market like greyhounds pursue rabbits. Like that speedy canine, it just cannot help itself. Well, sanity prevails with regard to future MINI models. Perhaps it was a case of the accountants finally getting their way.

To understand the issue, notice the sales chart below (2013 figures not released

Renault In Africa Top 19 Nations: 2007-13

Renault & Dacia popular in Morocco ...


Renault/Dacia sales by car / LCV appear below for the continent of Africa. What is amazing about this is that Africa is a place you do not get car sales data except for the odd nation. Unfortunately because other car makers do not play ball on this one, we have no brands to compare with Renault within a country, but at least we have the continent as a

Openness & Efficiency / Summary : 2014

This the fifth and final instalment on this subject. (for West Europe click here, for East Europe click here, for Americas click here, for Rest of the World click here). So why was it raised? Well because there seems a trend to less openness and that is the main point of the list below (the efficiency was just part of the points awarded). Why should something that is popular among people be

The Jaguar XK Has Run It's Course

The XKR with that 'outta my way' look.


Some cars are successful, others not. Nevertheless, they all have a shelf life. The Jaguar XK has been successful in the segment it sells in, but it is now coming to the end of it's use by date and other priorities mean the replacement is ready yet. So how many were made? My estimates by year are:











1996
7,125



1997
14,925

Belarus Sales By Make & Model : 2013

Capital Minsk. If you visit in winter, don't forget your woolies


Belarus is a young country, independent from the Soviet Union since 1991. They have about 9.5 million people, so car sales are modest for its size. They did have a 33% increase in car sales though.

European brands are the most successful, although, Japanese, Korean and Chinese brands are very active here. The US has a modest

Renault In America Top 13 Nations: 2007-13

The Renault Logan


Renault in the Americas has two striking features. One is that it has no presence in the USA or Canada. Second, the profound effect of the Dacia range in Latin America. Thanks to Renault's openness, we can see how this is so.

Firstly, the USA. I have a record of Renault selling 2,425 cars in 1956. I believe 90,500 were sold in the peak of 1959. After that, sales ebbed and

Openness & Efficiency / The Rest Of : 2014

How about trumpeting car sales data in China? 
Imports too would be nice


The fourth instalment of how to judge openness and efficiency covers all areas outside of Europe and the Americas. The result is rather sad. So what do we make of the nations in this vast region of humanity?

There are some notable omissions here. China is the biggest market and while you can sniff around and find

Openness & Efficiency / Americas : 2014

Sao Paulo Traffic


With West Europe averaging 16.8 and East Europe a miserable 6.2, it was America's turn. I didn't add the Caribbean Islands as there is no data from there that I know of, so I stuck to the mainland.

To give an insight into the region, written contact with the US or Canada usually produces a reply, but anything south of that and you enter an email black hole. Writing in

Renault In Europe Top 20 Nations: 2007-13

Renault hope they have struck gold with the 2014 Megane


When it comes to releasing sales data, Renault win my award for being the most open car maker in the world. As to why others are not so forthcoming, I assume they either have a deluded notion that their competitors have much to gain from such a revelation (they already know, duh) or that the public simply have no right to know. The

Import Car Sales In Korea: Europe vs Japan vs USA

The BMW 520d was top import in 2013


Imports have always had a tough time penetrating a market protected by tariffs. Luxury marques are not too badly affected, but run of the mill brands often struggle or even give up. This situation favours European makes, as they have the most premium brands.

Going back twenty years, only Europe and the USA sold cars in Korea. Up until the year 2000, Europe