Uruguay Passenger Car Sales : 2024 (Jan-Oct)

Registrations were up 19% for October and 8% YTD. Chevrolet has a long history of being the top brand but not for several years...until 2022 when it returned to lead again. In its third year as numero uno, it will retain that position but with a reduced margin. Hyundai has got past a slipping Suzuki and into second place. BYD is flying up the list like a bird (seagull?) but will it continue soaring? 

The top selling models were the Chevrolet Onyx (3,893), Hyundai HB20 (3,128), Renault Kwid (1,765), BYD Seagull (1,330), Peugeot 208 (1,135), Citroën C3 (1,219) and the Fiat Mobi (1,154). 

Data source: ACAU.

Car Industry Woes

The car manufacturing industry is facing challenging times. Sales in many markets are flat or reduced. More brands are vying for the customer, notably an influx of Chinese brands into many markets. Many car makers are not structured to adapt quickly to changes taking place. A few examples. 

Nissan is cutting 6% of its workforce or 9,000 jobs as net revenue fell by over 90% over the last six months. It will increase cooperation with some other Japanese car makers and reduce lead times. It will also focus more on electric and hybrid models. 

Audi recently announced that operating profit was down nearly 70% so far this year. There were various reasons for that, not just the challenging market place but still a sobering result. 

Volkswagen announced profit was down 64% and wanted to close up to three plants in Germany, lay off workers and cut pay by at least 10%. It hasn't gone down well at all. 

As I see it, the pressure is mainly from a surging Chinese car industry. They are taking more of the global sales but the pie isn't getting larger to accommodate this. Chinese companies have been quick to change and improve when required. China's import tariffs aren't helpful while expecting no such obstructions when exporting. 

Another issue is that those car makers that went into China producing cars made good money. They are now being driven back by local manufacturers and with falling volume, profits there are much harder to come by. 

It doesn't take much to move from very profitable to loss making. A drop in volume with overheads mainly fixed and the red ink can soon follow. If tough decisions aren't made and acted on, there will be grave consequences for some car manufacturers

Philippines Vehicle Sales : 2024 (Jan-Sep)

Putting this together was tricky. More than one source was required and they didn't match in all instances. There are also some soundly based estimates on the list below. Campi-TMA is the main source and according to that organisation sales were up 2% in September and increased 9% YTD. 

Toyota is well ahead, the Vios and Avanza models the most popular for the brand. Mitsubishi is next with the Xpander (below) and Mirage doing the big two for them.

Ford is some way back on third but the Ranger and Everest sell well. 

Nissan's top two are the Navara pick up and the Terra medium sized SUV. 

Suzuki are the same as last year for market share, the S-Presso and DZire its two most popular. 

Chinese brands are arriving in force and will be challenging more established ones. Most premium marques have lost market share it would seem, Lexus being a notable exception. Some brands aren't available to be added but all the main ones are present. 

UK Passenger Car Manufacturing : 1981-2024

Manufacturing cars in Western Europe isn't very cost effective. The standard of living has climbed as the wages improved. Any hint of a drop in that standard has quotes in the media of people wondering how they can make ends meet. 

In the UK, this period commenced with six main brands (luxury marques and sports car makers aren't included). Three Japanese companies joined, BMW released the new MINI and Ford made a small number of Mazdas which brought the brands being made in the UK to ten by the late 1990's.

In a flurry of activity, BMW MINI came in, but Ford and Peugeot left and MGR went broke. So seven it was and with Infiniti briefly eight. Then Infiniti was withdrawn from most of Europe, Honda gave up on assembly in the region and Vauxhall became a smaller volume light commercial manufacturer. 

Suddenly there were just five as there still are today. Nissan is moving toward electric production and the way that is presently plus profits being well down, not conducive to increased volume. MINI has capacity constraints so it won't be going up from here, Toyota has just one model and is sitting on that so we can only expect model cycle variances there. 

Jaguar has cut back its production as it transitions to a low volume premium brand. Only Land Rover has the potential to grow but not with the subdued sales we see globally today. So while the UK car industry is still operational, it's not fizzing either.

The Chinese are coming to Europe but whether higher wage countries will become beneficiaries of investment is uncertain. The few that have committed so far have gone the lower wage route. So is the current situation as good as it gets for the UK? 

Nissan Global Sales : 2022-24 (2024 Q1-Q3)

Nissan is open with its global data, something few companies are so hats off to them for that. The data below includes Nissan, Infiniti and the Venucia/DongFeng joint venture in China. First, we look at production by country and then sales by region. The 2024 is for nine months in case you wonder why the fall in numbers. 

Production: Over the last two years there has been a shift in where vehicles are made. More precisely, Mexico and China. The former has increased from 12% of the total to 21%, eclipsing China as the largest manufacturing country for Nissan. China has dropped from 33% to 20% so from a third to a fifth. As for the rest, it's been fairly stable, Japan was up three percentage points to 20%  the UK two. Overseas production is at 80%, high by Japanese car company standards.  

Regional sales: It follows production as one would likely expect. China isn't as important as it used to be and managing the decline in that market while maintaining solid global sales figures is impressive. 

Some detail: In Japan, Nissan passenger cars were 192,000, Kei cars 148,800 and light commercial vehicles 29,400. The Note/Note Aura model sold 79,600 units, the Serena 62,150, the Roox  55,250 and the Dayz 40,200.

In China the Nissan brand registered 435,650 sales and Infiniti 1,650. Venucia brand cars 37,000 and Dong Feng JV sales were 22,700. The Sylphy (picture below) accounted for 240,200 sales, Qashqai 81,750 and the Altima 51,400.

For the USA, Nissan car sales were 250,600, light trucks 408,400 and Infiniti 42,600. The model breakdown was covered here (Nissan US model). 

Over to Europe where Nissan registered 275,800 sales and Infiniti 450. The Qashqai registered 115,700 sales and the Juke 75,650.  

Data & picture source: Nissan. 

Denmark Passenger Car Sales : 2024 (Jan-Oct)

Registrations were up 3% YTD and for October up 9%. In October. electric cars accounted for 63% of passenger car sales, a record. Government incentives are encouraging buyers in that direction.

VW was the leading brand from 2011 to 2022 but it was unceremoniously bumped off its perch by Tesla which increased massively in 2023 to easily take the top spot. In 2024, VW has returned serve with strong growth while Tesla has lost 31% in market share. 

Recent moves in the EU to nullify subsidised cars from China gaining an unfair advantage will surely have an influence on future purchasing. That will be dependent of course on how pricing is affected as some brands may absorb some or maybe all of the increased cost. Time will tell.

The top selling models YTD were the Tesla Y (7,784), VW ID.4 (4,863), Tesla 3 (4,789), Audi Q4 e-Tron (4,381), Škoda Enyaq IV (4,186), Peugeot 208 (2,858), Citroën C3 (2,563) and Volvo EX30 (2,511). 

Data source: Mobility Denmark.

Cyprus Passenger Car Sales : 2024 (Jan-Oct)

Registrations were up and heading for the best year since about 2010. Before that sales were much higher so still some way from an all time record but at least the best for some time. 

The top spot has been historically interchangeable in Cyprus but for now, Kia is delivering one of the more consistent number one runs. The gap to second is considerable although in smaller markets, change can be drastic at times. Toyota is on the receiving end of such a shift as it dropped to fourth. Land Rover is enjoying success so far and moved up five placings as a result.

Data source Cystat. Pics Kia & Land Rover Facebook.

Toyota LCV UK Model Sales : 2021-24

Toyota light commercials are an important part of the range in Europe, an area that was somewhat neglected. The Hilux is the best selling although 2024 doesn't look like it will match 2023. In ten months, registrations stand at 5,073, compared to a full 2023 figure of 10,887. 

The Corolla Sportsvan commercial (picture below) is doing better albeit at a lower sales level. The 1,652 sales are well up on last year with two months to widen the gap further. Taking a passenger car wagon and converting it into a van makes sense. Stylish, carlike handling and comfort yet also cost effective.

The ProAce range is sourced from Stellantis and which are already popular within that Group. An example is the ProAce City pictured above. The large Max van is about to join the range to add impetus to sales volume.  

The ProAce Verso and City Verso are vans with seating so people movers or MPVs. They have previously been included in commercial vehicle data provided by Toyota but this year moved to the passenger car category. However, in the case of the ProAce Verso (included below under the ProAce), it seems that they are being double counted in 2024, but as only 130 sales are involved I presented the data as provided. 

Total sales in the UK for 2024 (ten months only) are 12,879 which is some way down on the complete 2023 number of 19,764. The Hilux is the main reason so we shall have to see if that model will fare better in 2025. 

Data and pictures: Toyota UK.

Toyota UK Passenger Car Sales : 2021-24

The Toyota brand has been gaining steadily in the UK, its hybrid technology winning over customers. The Yaris (GR version pictured below) and Yaris Cross are the most popular models with the electric bZ4X doing well too despite its odd name. In between them is the C-HR (picture above).

Total sales in the UK for 2024 (ten months only) are 86,866 which is close to the complete 2023 number of 109,415. It should be about the same by the end of the year and any increase in sales will also be an improvement in market share. 

The ProAce Verso and City Verso are vans with seating so people movers or MPVs. They have previously been included in commercial vehicle data provided by Toyota but this year moved to the passenger car category. 

Data and pictures: Toyota UK.

Lexus UK Model Sales : 2021-24

Lexus isn't a big player in the premium segment in Europe although it does quite well in the UK. The new LBX (picture above) is the new big thing for the marque and has quickly become the best selling model. The RZ (picture below) is in its first full year and currently 4th. The new LM people mover is not going to be anything more than a low volume model.   

Total sales in the UK for 2024 (ten months only) are 13,950 which is close to the complete 2023 number of 15,963. It should be about the same by the end of the year and any increase in sales will also be an improvement in market share. 

Data and pictures: Toyota UK.

Audi Global Model Sales : 2023/24 (Q1-Q3)

Whenever deliveries contract, it isn't a good look in a world that perceives growth as a sign of a healthy company. However, volume doesn't always equate with profit. Besides, reduced sales can be for all sorts of reasons. In the car industry today, electric car volume is falling for many manufacturers and extracting profit from them can prove elusive. Increased costs are another issue that may necessitate backing away from less profitable sales such as fleet. 

For Audi, deliveries are down 8% YTD. It is across most of the range so it would seem a planned strategy. It's a balancing act between selling at a price that allows a reasonable profit and also keeping assembly plants as busy as possible. Business is about profit, something the car industry has not paid as much attention to as it should. Maybe that's changing. 

Data & picture source: Audi.

Regions: Europe remains the largest region for Audi but less so, with China closing in. The USA and the rest of the world are well behind. 

Lamborghini Global Model Sales : 2023/24 (Q2)

When Lamborghini introduced the Urus SUV, it opened the marque to a new audience and lifted volume and no doubt profit. However, it may have reached its peak at just over 3,000 units per annum. In fact what saved Lamborghini from a small slide in deliveries was the replacement for the Aventador, the Revuelto. 

It will always be a niche player but one that has a unique character. They are too flamboyant for me (and too costly) but the well heeled extroverts out there will ensure it's not too short of customers. For 2024, deliveries could be about 11,000 in total. 

Data source: Audi. Pictures Lamborghini.

Region: Europe is the leading region for the marque, with the USA not too far behind. China is lower than I expected while 'Other' is strong. I assume the Middle East will be a major part of the latter figure.

Bentley Global Model Sales : 2023/24 (Q1-Q3)

I always thought when Bentley hit the 10,000 mark, that was about right for the marque and it settled there for several years. Then in 2021 15,000 produced and 2022 well over 16,000! heady stuff. Then in 2023 13,000 and this year somewhere around 10,000 if the current volume is maintained. 

It sounds disappointing on paper but it was it all too much. Perhaps it's now finding that sweet spot between volume and maximising profit. I say this without insider knowledge but it sounds about right to me. All models are down evenly, too much the case to be purely market driven. It looks like a controlled reduction and if so the correct way to go. 

Data source: Audi. Pictures Bentley.

Regions: Again volume change all rather even. The USA is the biggest market for the marque with China passing Europe. It's good to spread the sales in case one region contracts for whatever reason. 

Toyota Burnaston / 5 Million

Toyota started making cars in the UK in 1993. Amazingly, it is the last new car assembly plant built in the UK for any volume car maker. The country hasn't been attracting car plant investment for some time. Chery is contemplating doing so but not decided as yet. 

The first model was the Carina which became the Avensis in late 1997. The same year, the Corolla (also called the Auris for a while) joined in the same year. The Avensis departed in 2018 but the Corolla has soldiered on alone since then. 

Moving on to the motivation for this piece, 5 million cars have now departed from the facility at Burnaston, Derbyshire. That's an average of nearly 170,000 per annum. Amazingly, the split between the two model made there is about 50/50. 

If a UK customer buys and registers a Corolla Hatchback, Touring Sport or Corolla Commercial by the  31st December 2024 and they may be one of five customers to win back the cost of their new car. A nice touch. 

Summary: Two models improves plant utilsation and cost effectiveness but Toyota has not replaced the Avensis with another model. Surely they will in the future as the volume is now well short of capacity, going by historical numbers. 

The 2024 figure is for nine months of 2024. Picture source: Toyota UK.