Car sales are so bad in 2022 that even abysmal 2021 car year still compares favorably. But even in bad times there are always winners. These brands did very well against the trend. And these brands are the big losers.
We know, the lyrics in this section sometimes look like the jammed needle of a record player. We have been writing about declining car sales for a year and a half, partly as a result of chip and parts shortages. But that is the harsh reality. Just think: 175,755 new passenger cars were delivered in the first seven months of 2022. That was almost 14,000 (7.3 percent) less than in the same period last year. And 2021 was already the worst year of sales in living memory.
Some more statistics: electric cars account for 20 percent, petrol and (plug-in) hybrids 77 percent and diesel only 3 percent. Still, there are always winners, even if many car brands are leaning against the ropes.
South Korea rule the waves – Kia and Hyundai are doing great
Kia is by far the best-selling car brand and sold even more cars than last year. Hyundai has given chase. In 2021 the counter stopped at 5500. This year no fewer than 10,037 cars have been registered, with which Hyundai now occupies sixth place just behind BMW (10,161).
Rising prices are grist to the mill of budget brand Dacia, which sold almost 1000 more cars this year than in the same period last year (2834 vs. 1847). This is mainly due to the Spring. The Lynk & Co 01 rumbles on and this year already managed to seduce 2485 people. Let’s also mention Fiat among the positive outliers. Thanks to the electric 500, the number of Fiats sold rose by 664 to 3,214. Other slight risers include Peugeot and Porsche, while Toyota – with the excellent scoring Yaris and Yaris Cross – remained about the same.
There are also big losers – We’re looking at you, Mazda and Seat!
If so many brands score well, where are the losers? You will find this mainly among former list leaders. Opel (-16.5%) and Renault (-15.7%) are sinking further and further and no longer even have a place in the top 5. Volkswagen (-25.1%) was narrowly the best-selling car brand in 2021 , by overtaking Kia when the corks were about to pop. It is unlikely that this will also be possible in 2022. The backlog of Kia is already 4,226 cars. But the biggest losers of 2022 are Mazda (-35.4%) and Seat (-46.9%).
Top 5 models until July 2022
- Peugeot 208 (5801)
- Kia Niro (4055)
- Kia Picanto (3885)
- Volvo XC40 (3768)
- Peugeot 2008 (3572)
Top 5 brands until July 2022
- Kia (17.288)
- Peugeot (13.724)
- Toyota (13.551)
- Volkswagen (13.062)
- BMW (10.161)