Renault Production France : 2016-20

Renault production in France involves six factories, the Renault Group model or external brand they are made for are listed below. Total production across Europe (including Russia) was 1,671,700, down 22.4%. Renault and Dacia are the Renault Group models made. The vehicles they make for other companies are shown as totals rather than models. The data is from Renault and is generally easy to follow but there are a few areas where I had to estimate. 

The miserable 2020 is reflected by what is seen here. It is unreasonable to read too much into the data, other than to be aware of the impact that the Covid-19 pandemic had on things. The total of vehicles made in France alone was 543,300, -20.8%. The new Clio had a lift in volume but otherwise it was subdued. 2021 is continuing the theme of challenging issues that car makers currently have to face.

The Ford Mondeo 1993-2022

The traditional car style that was the mainstay of the car industry is in decline. What is called the SUV is taking over. I say called because the line between a car and SUV is increasingly blurred. That created yet another category the CUV or crossover vehicle. Some of these are nothing more than a hatchback with marginally differing height.

That as it may be, I don't want to hijack myself into a discussion of how cars should be categorised, other than to say it needs an overhaul in my humble opinion. The large saloon car is in retreat, in some regions of the world more than others. 

In Europe, the home of the Mondeo, that is the case with the demise of the model altogether in about a year's time. Ford is exiting the traditional car with more zeal than most but in that, they are setting a lead that others will surely follow in due course. 

While the Mondeo was sold in many countries, the data below is eurocentric. The series I model don't have European sales data so inserted combined production numbers instead. That's a bit misleading as that figure includes exports beyond Europe, but that's all I had.

After that, the statistics are yearly sales for the European region so a clearer pattern emerges. The series II was exceeding 300,000 in its best years, III only bettering 200,000, IV found 100,000 a challenge and V never even got near to that figure. 2020 was an unusually poor year but 20,000 sales is a non-sustainable pittance.

From that, we can see the decision to end the Mondeo was a no-brainer. People don't want them anymore. The plant in Spain where they have been made since 2014 (Belgium before that) will continue with the Galaxy, S-Max and more battery packs. For the Mondeo, it's the end of the road. 

Canada Top 50 Models : 2020

Apparently, it snows in Canada?

Getting reliable data is an increasingly difficult task. I held off with this post because I wasn't happy with the quality. It's better now but there could be a few minor discrepancies. The 20% drop in sales in Canada is reflected in the amount of yellow on display. Some models did manage to increase.

Ford is the leader with the F-Series but no surprise there. Next is what I call the Dodge Ram P/U, although RAM became a stand-alone division in 2020 when it was separated from Dodge. The Chevrolet Silverado had a good year as did the GMC Sierra. Pick up trucks are the big models in Canada as they are south of the border.

The Ford Ranger is back

Thinking Laterally

Imagine being very well endowed financially and having a basement swimming pool. You want to make use of this low-level water tank but you're not really into swimming. Getting wet isn't your thing. The idea of making it a super-sized fish tank just isn't appealing either. There must be something it can be used gainfully.

The solution? Well, you own a say a Range Rover Evoque, all of their range well known for their versatility. Besides, you don't have the time to take it out fording streams and conquering the wild outdoors. So you have a couple of pool ramps installed. It avoids the unpalatable idea of getting wet and yet meets the desire to take your SUV into an environment more taxing than city commuting. Problem solved, I'd say. It's all about thinking laterally.

Russia Top 50 Models : 2020

Should have used the satnav

As there is import duty here, models have to be assembled to sell in quantity. The market is big enough to have quite a few in that category. It's no surprise to have the top two placings filled with Ladas. Hyundai, Kia, VW, Renault (Dacia), Toyota and Škoda all showing up strongly. 

China and Russia seem to have close ties politically and this filters down into commerce, with a few more  Chinese models entering the Top 50.

Home, home on the range....

UK Bus & Heavy Truck Sales : 2020

An Alexander Dennis product plying its trade in London

To have heavy trucks and buses at a site that is all about cars may seem incongruous but some of us may have an interest in the larger vehicles that share the road with us. I will first of all cover buses, which includes any conveyance with multiple seats. I would have preferred just the larger sort but this is how the SMMT releases the data. Then we can consider large trucks.

Bus: Ford had an increase in a depressed market but it had a very poor 2019 so that has to be taken into account. Still a good result. The first big bus company is Alexander Dennis, unfortunately down 46% but large bus sales can be variable so not too much to be read into one year. 

It's nice to see Wrightbus still trading after it went into receivership a couple of years back. The second half of 2020 went very well for the Northern Ireland company. It's now got a hydrogen-fueled bus which gives it an excellent opportunity to succeed in a tough industry. As for the rest, there are plenty of minor players that had varying degrees of success.  

The world's first hydrogen double-decker bus

Truck: This is very much a specialised field, unlike many years ago when many carmakers had a truck division. A few still do but there are only a handful of companies that make most of the large trucks today. 

DAF is by far the dominant brand, many of the sales below sourced from their plant at Leyland in the north of England. It's part of the Paccar Group. Another local manufacturer is Dennis Eagle, part of the Terberg, Rosroca Group. It isn't big in volume but had a tidy increase. It specialises in refuse collection trucks. 

Australia Large Car Sales Graph : 1995-2018

Safety Stars

Picture source: NRMA Australia.

Car crash testing involves awarding starts depending on their safety in preset crash tests. Because all cars are assessed by the same standards, it's a case of comparing apples with apples. One can decide whether a car meets your safety standards compared to the competition before you make a purchase decision. 

What happens if the testing organisation moves the goal posts? Then it would depend on when the vehicle was tested. If they were tested years apart, then the comparison between models becomes irrelevant. A recent example in Australia highlights this.

A few years ago, a Renault van was tested and got three stars. Since then, many safety aids were added to the scoring system. Mitsubishi released the same van onto the market but rather than apply the same stars to it as the equivalent Renault model, the van was retested and the result was a zero star score. 

So here we have the same van sold under two nameplates, one can claim a three-star safety rating and the other zero. It exposed an anomaly where vehicles that have been on the Australian market for several years may have a five-star rating and a new model that may have more safety features could receive a lower rating, due to the much stricter scoring regime applied to it.

How is that supposed to help people make an informed choice? Until recently tests only covered structural safety and now technological safety features have been added. Surely for the time being a structural score and a technological score could both be issued. That would let people know that the structural integrity of the vehicle is sound but it lags in the technology side of safety. 

At some point in the future, the stars could be combined from both sides to create a higher star rating of say ten rather than just five. Giving a vehicle a zero score when it has some structural safety is misleading. The zero to five scoring system is too narrow to allow for this.    

The organisation ANCAP - which was behind this bizarre situation - introduced its tougher scoring system with good intent. As virtually all cars now get a five-star rating, the results weren't saying much. Adding new criteria was a way to highlight the safety features modern cars are expected to have. 

But to have a system that makes older vehicles look safer than new ones (when in some cases the opposite is the case) is working against helping people chose safer vehicles. For this, I give ANCAP zero stars.

France Top Premium Brands Graph : 2000-20

France doesn't have a premium brand unless one counts the fringe player DS which has recently been created for that purpose. It should morph into something more premium rather than being a Citroën with bling, which seems to be what's happening. 

German premium marques are the mainstay of this segment. Back in 2000, it was Mercedes, followed by Audi. The arrival of the MINI just after that gave impetus to the company's sales and has led since 2007. Audi got the better of Mercedes for a few years but M-B struck back. DS came on quickly but is now regrouping after a sales retraction.

As for the bottom feeders, Alfa Romeo has been quite popular but even dabbling in an SUV hasn't been enough to avert a slump. Volvo is slowly on the up and JLR has meandered along without ruffling competitor's feathers.

I don't know if a picture of someone waiting for a car to
be recharged is the way to promote electric propulsion

France Top Brands Graph : 1995-2020

The Peugeot 208

Below is a France graph or as I call it fra gra. Culinary jokes aside, it becomes clear the strength of French brands in their homeland. Renault has been the kingpin for so long but is currently fighting off Peugeot for that position. Citroën was closer to the two leaders but has fallen back since around 2010.

The Citroën Xsara Picasso

Ford and Opel were quite well placed in 2005 but over the decades, the trend has been downward. VW has held steady through some financial downturns but this 2020 well and truly beat it. Dacia is owned by Renault and benefits from that connection, surging from 2005 but it too succumbed to the virus. Toyota gained through the 1990's and early 2000's and in 2020 fared better than others. 

The Renault Mégane

Russia Top Premium Graph : 2005-20