To say that car buyers in Germany support local brands is like saying the pope is a Catholic. I mean it goes without saying...so I won't say it. VW had its best market share since 1989, Nissan since 1998 and Hyundai its best ever. The market was strong, up 8.8%.
1 VW 687,000 21.6%
2 Mercedes 285,700 9.0%
3 BMW 257,100 8.1%
4 Opel 254,600 8.0%
5 Audi 250,700 7.9%6 Ford 230,900 7.3%
7 Skoda 142,600 4.5%
8 Renault 119,100 3.8%
9 Hyundai 86,900 2.7%
10 Peugeot 82,700 2.6%
11 Toyota 80,500 2.5%
12 Fiat 80,100 2.5%
13 Nissan 69,800 2.2%
14 Citroen 66,700 2.1%
15 Seat 59,000 1.9%
16 Dacia 48,800 1.5%
17 Kia 42,100 1.3%
18 Mazda 41,300 1.3%
19 MINI 40,300 1.3%
20 Suzuki 34,400 1.1%
21 Volvo 33,900 1.1%
22 Mitsubishi 30,100 0.9%23 Chevrolet 29,800 0.9%
24 Honda 29,500 0.9%
25 smart 29,500 0.9%
26 Porsche 18,700 0.6%
27 Alfa Rom 10,500 0.3%
28 Land Rover 6,700 0.2%
29 Subaru 6,200 0.2%
30 Chrysler 5,200 0.2%
31 Daihatsu 3,900 0.1%
32 Jaguar 3,100 0.1%
33 Lexus 2,700 0.1%
34 Lancia 2,350 0.1%
35 Lada 2,050 0.1%
Others 4,850 0.2%
Total 3,173,600 8.8% increase.
Big Winners: Ford (+16.5%), Hyundai (+16.9%), Nissan (+14.5%), Dacia (+30.2%) and MINI (+28.2%).
Big Losers: Mazda (-10.6%), Subaru (-20%) and Daihatsu (-26%).
Being part of the Euro currency has got to be a boon for German car makers. By undervaluing the strength of the German economy, it keeps exports competitive and car production strong. With the sales increase of 2011, it doesn't seem to be hurting domestic sales either.
My guess: Germany is prospering and benefiting from the weak Euro, so expect more of the same.
Source: KBA
Pic: VW plant - AP
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