Opel vs VW: Nederland

For decades GM Opel was easily the top brand in the Netherlands. Of late VW came up as an opponent and what ensued can be seen below. The first column is the year, 2nd - Opel's sales followed by position in the market and percentage of market held, 3rd - the same but for VW:

Year	Opel			VW
1985	88,000	1	17.7%	39,000	3	7.8%
1990	72,000	1	14.2%	39,000	4	7.8%
1995	63,000	1	14.1%	48,000	2	11.7%
2000	77,000	1	12.9%	71,000	2	11.9%
2005	44,000	2	9.6%	45,000	1	9.7%
2010	23,000	5	7.0%	35,000	1	10.7%

Opel's market share is down from nearly 18% to only 7% in that time and its position from 1st to 5th. VW meanwhile has increased share by three percentage points and gone top from 4th in 1990. GM has been strapped for cash at times and the product, while OK, is not class leading. VW does has good quality, if not particularly good value. I would personally pick Ford Europe as offering a better all round range than either of the above makes, but that marque only sold the same number of cars as Opel - just beating it to 4th spot.

In summary: GM Europe needs to work hard is it hopes to claw back lost ground on the sales front.

Renault, Peugeot & Citroen Sales France: 1980-2010

Below is a list showing how the big three brands have fared over the last three decades in the French car market. Renault has been the number one brand all that time, but is now under pressure to keep it that way. All the figures are in thousands, so you need to add three zeros. The first column is the year, 2nd - Renault's total French sales and market share, 3rd - the same but for Peugeot, 4th - again for Citroen:

Year / - Renault - / - Peugeot - / - Citroen -
1980 / 759 40.5% / 293 15.7% / 271 14.5%
1985 / 508 28.7% / 364 20.6% / 227 12.8%
1990 / 639 27.7% / 498 21.6% / 267 11.6%
1995 / 564 29.2% / 342 17.7% / 241 12.5%
2000 / 602 28.2% / 398 18.6% / 262 12.3%
2005 / 524 25.4% / 362 17.5% / 271 13.1%
2010 / 498 22.1% / 401 17.8% / 328 14.6%

Back in 1980, a combined Peugeot & Citroen (PSA) was well short of Renault. However, Renault has steadily declined whilst both PSA brands have increased. Of course, Renault's 1980 market share was never going to be sustained and the brand is now more focused on making profit than simply moving metal.

Ford Sales UK: 1980-2010

Below is a list showing how Ford has slid in the last three decades on the UK sales charts. Ford has been the number one brand all that time, but is now fighting a rearguard action to maintain it. All the figures are rounded with three zeros. The first column is the year, 2nd - Ford's total UK sales and UK market share, 3rd - top Ford model that year preceded by position achieved, followed by sales, 4th - second Ford model that year preceded by position achieved, followed by sales.

Year	Ford	Share
1980	465,000	30.7%	1 Cortina	190,000		2 Escort	122,000
1985	486,000	26.5%	1 Escort	157,000		3 Fiesta	124,000
1990	507,000	25.3%	1 Fiesta	151,000		2 Escort	142,000
1995	411,000	21.1%	1 Escort	138,000		2 Fiesta	130,000
2000	374,000	16.8%	1 Focus	115,000		3 Fiesta	92,000
2005	348,000	14.2%	1 Focus	145,000		5 Fiesta	84,000
2010	280,000	13.8%	1 Fiesta	103,000		4 Focus	78,000

Ford's share is down each period. The market has gone that way over the years, with car buying choice diversifying. However, it does reflect Ford has lost dominance and Vauxhall in particular has been closing in. Does Ford have the product and marketing savvy to fight off other brands? I think it has the former, but regarding the latter, I cannot say.