Greece Passenger Car Sales : 2024 (Jan-Apr)

Registrations were up 31% in April and ahead 14% YTD. Toyota is taking a strong lead here with 15.5% of the total. Toyota took the lead in 1998 and has been at the top since apart from 2005 and 2012. It's the highest market share it's had so far. 

Both Peugeot and Citroën have done well to take the next two places as has Suzuki in rounding out the top four. Below that quartet there were few brands improving their market share, bearing in mind the +/- Diff column represents a change in a brand's share. 

Data source: SEAA.

Lotus Sales : 2023

Lotus has never been that forthcoming when it comes to sales data. For the most part it wasn't all that positive so maybe a sensible move. Now that it is under the control of the Geely Auto Group greater transparency may come. What I do know is revealed to the right.

6,970 cars were delivered in 2023. I have seen the figure 576 for 2022 but based on sales by country I do know of, that is too low and by some margin. I have sales by country for 744 vehicles in 2022 and there are some missing. 

I don't have a 2022 figure for China but it would have been minimal. As for the US I've seen estimates that looked more like wild guesses. The Middle East is also a data black hole. So if anyone can add something, let me know although I've yet to have any such offer taken up.

Of the 3,506 delivered in China during 2023, I believe the sales by model were the Eletre SUV 2,929 and the Emira sports car 577. Lotus has revealed the global numbers between the Eletre SUV and all sports cars, which were 4,361 and 2,609 respectively. 

So things are booming and with more models coming out in 2024 the number of deliveries will continue to grow quickly. The marque that made great sports cars but struggled to balance the books now has a brighter future with its Chinese owners. 

France Passenger Car Sales : 2024 (Jan-Apr)

The market was up 7% in April and 11% YTD so nice and steady. Renault has been battling it out with Peugeot for the top spot, each holding about 15% share. Renault owned Dacia is third and Toyota has passed Citroën to claim fourth. Not much in it between four and five mind you.

Data source: AAA Data.

Mclaren Deliveries : 2023 / Q1 2024

Mclaren has this unusual policy of releasing full year sales figures with Q1 data for the following year at the same time. So here we have 2023 with Q1 2024. 

2023: Unit wholesale deliveries were down 2%, mainly due to one model being phased out (GT) and the 720 about to be replaced by the 750. Below is shown the regional mix, with North America the main region. It did lose some share of total deliveries but still manage to account for over a third of them.   

Data source & pics Mclaren.

                                                                                                                                      Model mix: Below is Mclaren's way of showing model volumes, which could do with a little more detail but the general idea is conveyed. The Artura hybrid sports series model led the way in 2023. 

2024: Already there has been an uptick in deliveries for the first quarter, up 28%. North America over doubled its volume and took over half of the total in the process. All other regions grew with the exception of China which belly flopped. A hiccup? It seems so although the 750S isn't sold there. 

Model mix: The GT has disappeared, the 750S has gone into orbit and the Artura is up slightly. Again, more detail would be helpful. Still no confirmation of when an SUV will be added to the range. 

Germany Passenger Car Sales : 2024 (Jan-Apr)

Registrations were up 20% in April and are also ahead 8% YTD. VW is by far the main volume player here with over double the lead over second placed Mercedes-Benz. With 19.3% so far this year, that's the highest percentage since 2016, albeit comparing four months with twelve. 

The three main premium marques all suffered some market share loss although Audi was the only one of the three to actually lose out regarding units sold. Porsche isn't overly successful in Germany but seems to be remedying that in 2024. 

VW's Škoda is now close to passing Audi but it's early days. I estimated SEAT and Cupra based on unique Cupra models and an estimate on the models that overlap. It may slightly favour SEAT but not by much. Sales for these two brands are not separated by KBA 

Data source: KBA. Pictures: Manufacturers.

Jaguar UK 2024 Registrations - Curious (Jan-Apr)

I'm a fan of Jaguar cars but have not been a fan of how JLR has treated the marque of late. Some of the things I've heard about I can't understand but a recent development in the UK caught my eye, perhaps yours also.

To the right, there is a chart showing UK registrations for the first four months of 2024. January was reasonably good with a 30% increase but thereafter it's gone ballistic. Is April a sign things are tapering off? Time will tell.

Looking at the broader picture, Jaguar's market share in the UK grew from 0.9% in 2015 to a peak of 1.56% in 2018 and up to 2020. The continuity for those three years was impressive! 

Then a collapse down to less than half the volume in two years. That was harsh but Land Rover got priority when component supplies were at a premium. Then this sudden upturn again. Whatever the reason, the 2024 movement is too kneejerk to be purely market driven. Is it about catching up with back orders as supply has improved?

It's good to see a local make doing well in its home market which is the case everywhere else. I certainly didn't expect it, given JLR's recent actions regarding Jaguar. It has a wonderful history and that should be celebrated. 

Data: SMMT. Pictures: Jaguar Cars.

PS. If anyone has insight into these matters so as to shed light on things, please leave a comment (no registration required) or email me at rdc1234@gmail.com. Thank you.

Belgium Passenger Car Sales : 2024 (Jan-Apr)

With registrations for April the same as last year and the YTD total up 2%, one could be excused for thinking that brand sales would be very stable. However, by comparing market share variance for four months of 2024 with a complete 2023, there is quite a bit of change within the list below. 

The top four aren't affected too much with BMW enjoying its fourth year at the top, but below it gets more variable. Fifth to eighth all had more than useful gains with others below well up or down. It shows that while increases are not that common at the moment, it's either taking longer for individual brands to find their level or when stock was constrained, people learned to be less brand loyal. 

Data source: FEBIAC.

Iceland Passenger Car Sales : 2024 (Jan-Apr)

Passenger car registrations are well down for 2024 in Iceland. They were -46% YTD but only -16% for April. In such an environment, there are usually drastic changes in fortunes. In addition, being a small volume market, a shipment of vehicles can change things quickly. 

A case in point is shown with Dacia and Hyundai. Combined, they took a third of the total sales in April. That pushed them to the top of the ladder. Toyota is a long time leader here but a rampant Tesla knocked it off its perch in 2023. It's now third but there is plenty of time to remedy that anomaly. 

The data below is for market share change in comparison with total registrations in 2023. Tesla has lost 80% of its share when sales are already down a half! Maybe there's a boat coming soon ladened with cars. It's surprising to see Land Rover so high in any market but it does seem to have strong starts to the year here. 

Data source: Samgongustofa.