Market down -22.6%, Peugeot 308 III cracks podium, Ford Puma in Top 10 – Best Selling Cars Blog

The Peugeot 308 nameplate is on the French podium for the first time in over 5 years. Picture largus.fr

French new car sales skid down for the 11th month in a row in April, accelerating its fall at -22.6% and 108,723 registrations. When removing pandemic-plagued April 2020 (20,997 sales), this is the lowest April volume in 57 years: since the 106,311 units of April 1965… When comparing to pre-pandemic April 2019 (188.199), the market is down -42.2%. The year-to-date volume is now off -18.6% to 474,083. Private sales hold 46% of the market in April vs. 45.5% year-to-date at 215,368 units (-13%). Petrol sales are down -33.5% to 40,732 and 37.5% share, diesel is off -48.1% to 17,156 and 15.8% share but HEV is up 18.7% to 22,490 units and 20.7% share. BEV is also up, by 32.7% to 12,692 units and 11.7% share but PHEV is down -8.2% to 10,234 and 9.4% share.

Peugeot (-32.3%) signs a 6th win in the past 7 months and cements its YTD lead despite falling much faster than the market to 16.3% share. In fact the three main French manufacturers all lose share year-on-year with Renault (-31.7%) at 13.7%, its lowest since July 2021, and Citroen (-33.9%) at 8.6%, its lowest for the year. In contrast Dacia (+6.5%) delivers the only year-on-year gain in the Top 6 and ends the month only 0.7 point of share below Citroen. It distances Volkswagen (-31.2%) and Toyota (-20.4%). Ford (+10.9%) and Kia (+9.1%) are the other two gainers in the remainder of the Top 10 while BMW (-18.6) is up four spots on March to #9 and Hyundai (-8.4%) up two to #10. Below, notice Nissan (+47.8%), DS (+1%), Cupra (+162%), Mitsubishi (+158%), Alpine (+158.9%) and Alfa Romeo (+196%) all posting market-defying upticks.

The Ford Puma breaks into the French Top 10 for the first time in March.

In the models ranking, the Peugeot 208 (-20.4%) easily holds onto the top spot with 5.4% share vs. 5.9% so far this year. The Citroen C3 (-20%) returns to #2 for the 2nd time in the past 3 months, a ranking it also holds YTD. The Peugeot 308 III is up three spots on March to crack the podium for the first time ever for this generation and the first time since February 2017 for the 308 nameplate. The Dacia Sandero (-16.8%) is down two ranks to #4 ahead of the Renault Captur (-14.6%) staying at #5. The Peugeot 2008 (-55.6%) collapses year-on-year but is up three spots on last month to #6 ahead of the Peugeot 3008 (-55.3%) also in grave difficulty. The Fiat 500 (+31.8%) goes completely against the market and climbs 6 ranks to #8 overall and #1 foreign model. This means the Fiat 500 sells better in France than in Italy in terms of both volume and share. But where has the Renault Clio gone? It is down -68.3% year-on-year to a barely believable 9th place overall, by far its worst ever ranking at home. Stock issues could be the source of this particularly disastrous month. The Ford Puma (+69.7%) breaks into the French Top 10 for the very first time at #10 and is now the best-selling foreigner YTD at #12.

Previous month: France March 2022: Market plunges -19.5%, Dacia (+31.4%) defiant, places Sandero at #2

One year ago: France April 2021: Renault Clio V back on top, Hyundai (+19.8%) impresses, sales down -25.4% on two years ago 

Full April 2022 Top 20 brands and Top 80 models below.

France April 2022 – brands:

Pos	Brand	Apr-22	%	/21	Mar	2022	%	/21	Pos	FY21
1	Peugeot	17,708	16.3%	-32.3%	1	79,110	16.7%	-29.0%	1	1
2	Renault	14,920	13.7%	-31.7%	2	67,606	14.3%	-24.4%	2	2
3	Citroen	9,333	8.6%	-33.9%	3	45,751	9.7%	-23.2%	3	3
4	Dacia	8,550	7.9%	6.5%	4	37,631	7.9%	-2.8%	4	4
5	Volkswagen	6,603	6.1%	-31.2%	5	30,622	6.5%	-15.8%	5	5
6	Toyota	6,506	6.0%	-20.4%	6	27,780	5.9%	-20.4%	6	6
7	Ford	4,027	3.7%	10.9%	7	16,529	3.5%	-11.7%	7	12
8	Kia	3,960	3.6%	9.1%	10	15,195	3.2%	5.2%	8	11
9	BMW	3,642	3.3%	-18.6%	13	13,584	2.9%	-18.9%	11	9
10	Hyundai	3,638	3.3%	-8.4%	12	14,809	3.1%	2.9%	9	10
11	Mercedes	3,496	3.2%	-28.5%	8	13,774	2.9%	-21.6%	10	7
12	Fiat	3,411	3.1%	-1.7%	15	11,255	2.4%	-12.8%	14	13
13	Audi	3,098	2.8%	-30.9%	11	12,661	2.7%	-21.0%	12	8
14	Nissan	2,908	2.7%	47.8%	17	9,847	2.1%	-11.5%	15	18
15	Opel	2,605	2.4%	-32.6%	14	11,278	2.4%	-20.8%	13	14
16	Skoda	2,553	2.3%	-17.5%	16	9,495	2.0%	-17.4%	16	15
17	DS	1,869	1.7%	1.0%	18	7,503	1.6%	-1.7%	19	21
18	Mini	1,502	1.4%	-43.4%	19	7,890	1.7%	-12.8%	18	19
19	Suzuki	1,333	1.2%	-24.6%	20	6,357	1.3%	-24.0%	20	20
20	Seat	1,202	1.1%	-57.1%	21	5,756	1.2%	-45.4%	21	16
n/a	Volvo	811	0.7%	-50.1%	22	4,006	0.8%	-29.8%	22	22
n/a	Cupra	668	0.6%	162.0%	27	1,703	0.4%	100.8%	25	30
n/a	Jeep	412	0.4%	-38.3%	25	1,977	0.4%	-33.4%	23	23
n/a	Land Rover	346	0.3%	-43.0%	28	1,109	0.2%	-47.4%	29	25
n/a	Mitsubishi	258	0.2%	158.0%	35	719	0.2%	35.4%	31	31
n/a	Lexus	226	0.2%	-49.8%	29	1,295	0.3%	-17.5%	27	27
n/a	Alpine	189	0.2%	158.9%	32	531	0.1%	80.6%	32	34
n/a	Porsche	171	0.2%	-35.2%	30	825	0.2%	-21.3%	30	29
n/a	Alfa Romeo	148	0.1%	196.0%	33	481	0.1%	30.0%	33	35
n/a	Tesla	97	0.1%	-54.0%	9	8,578	1.8%	43.0%	17	17
n/a	Smart	93	0.1%	-20.5%	31	460	0.1%	-16.1%	34	33
n/a	Jaguar	77	0.1%	-72.2%	34	309	0.1%	-47.8%	35	32
n/a	Maserati	10	0.0%	66.7%	43	20	0.0%	-16.7%	42	39
n/a	Bentley	9	0.0%	350.0%	39	26	0.0%	116.7%	39	44
n/a	Lamborghini	6	0.0%	-53.8%	40	25	0.0%	-30.6%	41	40

France April 2022 – models:

Pos	Model	Apr-22	%	/21	Mar	2022	%	/20	Pos	FY21
1	Peugeot 208 II	5,865	5.4%	-20.4%	1	27,740	5.9%	-16.9%	1	1
2	Citroen C3	4,377	4.0%	-20.0%	3	21,049	4.4%	-14.0%	2	5
3	Peugeot 308 III	4,192	3.9%	new	6	13,170	2.8%	new	8	93
4	Dacia Sandero III	3,899	3.6%	-16.8%	2	17,681	3.7%	-22.6%	4	4
5	Renault Captur II	3,423	3.1%	-14.6%	5	15,263	3.2%	-18.3%	6	6
6	Peugeot 2008 II	2,906	2.7%	-55.6%	9	15,579	3.3%	-42.9%	5	3
7	Peugeot 3008	2,808	2.6%	-55.3%	8	13,943	2.9%	-31.8%	7	7
8	Fiat 500	2,737	2.5%	31.8%	14	8,027	1.7%	1.4%	13	13
9	Renault Clio V	2,474	2.3%	-68.3%	4	18,245	3.8%	-37.2%	3	2
10	Ford Puma	2,138	2.0%	69.7%	12	8,246	1.7%	25.4%	12	25
11	Toyota Yaris	2,031	1.9%	-25.2%	19	6,328	1.3%	-53.1%	19	8
12	Dacia Duster	1,959	1.8%	-15.6%	13	9,669	2.0%	-4.5%	9	9
13	Renault Twingo	1,925	1.8%	-33.6%	15	6,617	1.4%	-50.6%	16	10
14	Renault Arkana	1,857	1.7%	18470.0%	11	9,426	2.0%	22342.9%	10	21
15	Dacia Spring	1,568	1.4%	529.7%	18	6,521	1.4%	1036.1%	17	36
16	Toyota Yaris Cross	1,566	1.4%	new	22	7,078	1.5%	new	14	78
17	VW T-Roc	1,521	1.4%	-19.0%	17	6,257	1.3%	-10.4%	20	20
18	VW Polo	1,499	1.4%	-8.9%	16	6,390	1.3%	-23.8%	18	15
19	Opel Corsa	1,392	1.3%	-14.7%	30	4,570	1.0%	-27.1%	30	27
20	Citroen C5 Aircross	1,384	1.3%	-28.4%	51	4,637	1.0%	-47.2%	27	17
21	Nissan Qashqai	1,383	1.3%	285.2%	29	4,003	0.8%	41.7%	34	n/a
22	Renault Kadjar	1,277	1.2%	12.2%	58	2,740	0.6%	-43.8%	45	37
23	Citroen C3 Aircross	1,230	1.1%	-47.0%	10	8,762	1.8%	-10.0%	11	12
24	Peugeot 5008	1,214	1.1%	-52.4%	24	5,084	1.1%	-43.0%	23	18
25	Toyota C-HR	1,170	1.1%	-18.7%	23	4,976	1.0%	-11.1%	25	28
26	Hyundai Tucson	1,166	1.1%	-19.0%	27	4,991	1.1%	-12.2%	24	22
27	Renault Mégane IV	1,090	1.0%	-60.8%	35	5,112	1.1%	-56.6%	22	11
28	Hyundai Kona	1,077	1.0%	-9.8%	34	4,098	0.9%	4.7%	33	39
29	Renault Zoe	1,052	1.0%	-16.8%	33	4,629	1.0%	-5.0%	28	16
30	Renault Grand Scénic (est)	1,022	0.9%	-17.3%	53	2,129	0.4%	-47.0%	55	41
31	Toyota Corolla	1,009	0.9%	-43.8%	26	4,620	1.0%	-26.4%	29	24
32	Kia Sportage	986	0.9%	106.3%	40	2,843	0.6%	40.3%	42	63
33	Dacia Jogger	964	0.9%	new	32	2,859	0.6%	new	41	n/a
34	Mercedes Classe A	945	0.9%	-24.2%	28	3,734	0.8%	-24.0%	35	30
35	Ford Kuga	918	0.8%	31.9%	31	3,595	0.8%	16.1%	36	52
36	Mini Hatch	899	0.8%	-24.2%	25	4,924	1.0%	5.7%	26	26
37	VW T-Cross	874	0.8%	-56.8%	21	4,556	1.0%	-14.7%	31	29
38	VW Golf	849	0.8%	-21.0%	42	4,118	0.9%	-12.5%	32	31
39	Citroen C4 III	837	0.8%	-62.4%	20	5,423	1.1%	-7.5%	21	19
40	DS 4	810	0.7%	new	37	2,947	0.6%	new	38	n/a
41	BMW X1	762	0.7%	1.3%	52	2,833	0.6%	-17.5%	43	51
42	Nissan Juke	745	0.7%	-10.1%	45	2,820	0.6%	-32.4%	44	45
43	Skoda Fabia	727	0.7%	31.9%	38	2,507	0.5%	11.3%	51	82
44	DS 7 Crossback	720	0.7%	-26.8%	50	2,541	0.5%	-38.8%	49	35
45	Audi A3	701	0.6%	-18.2%	49	2,535	0.5%	-19.8%	50	53
46	Audi Q3	688	0.6%	-32.5%	41	2,610	0.6%	-20.1%	47	40
47	Kia Niro	678	0.6%	-10.8%	44	2,730	0.6%	-22.1%	46	46
48	VW Taigo	676	0.6%	new	60	1,914	0.4%	new	59	n/a
49	Mercedes GLA	652	0.6%	-39.9%	43	2,563	0.5%	-14.7%	48	58
50	BMW Série 1	632	0.6%	-45.1%	77	2,195	0.5%	-46.5%	54	42
51	Suzuki Swift	625	0.6%	-28.1%	36	2,893	0.6%	-33.1%	39	38
52	Audi Q2	619	0.6%	6.4%	54	1,858	0.4%	-14.8%	61	62
53	Nissan Micra	578	0.5%	5.7%	57	2,094	0.4%	-28.8%	57	64
54	BMW X3	561	0.5%	78.1%	n/a	1,317	0.3%	-10.9%	87	74
55	Hyundai i20	551	0.5%	-5.5%	n/a	1,823	0.4%	-18.6%	62	72
56	Cupra Formentor	544	0.5%	173.4%	56	1,631	0.3%	133.0%	66	n/a
57	Opel Crossland	523	0.5%	-47.3%	48	2,100	0.4%	-36.3%	56	59
58	MG eHS (est)	485	0.4%	1632.1%	139	1,185	0.2%	495.5%	92	n/a
59	Mini Countryman	456	0.4%	-55.2%	73	2,350	0.5%	-23.9%	53	56
60	Citroen E-C4	448	0.4%	58.9%	64	1,534	0.3%	110.7%	76	n/a
61	Seat Ibiza	410	0.4%	-67.8%	75	1,591	0.3%	-57.2%	69	48
62	Kia Rio	408	0.4%	-9.5%	n/a	1,602	0.3%	-10.8%	68	73
63	Kia EV6	403	0.4%	new	69	1,566	0.3%	new	73	n/a
64	Kia Picanto	391	0.4%	-11.7%	n/a	1,614	0.3%	-30.5%	67	65
65	Mercedes GLC	386	0.4%	-47.0%	67	1,377	0.3%	-45.2%	82	83
66	VW Tiguan	376	0.3%	-71.9%	47	2,978	0.6%	-37.3%	37	34
67	Seat Arona	376	0.3%	-44.4%	66	1,574	0.3%	-35.7%	72	60
68	Skoda Karoq	369	0.3%	-31.5%	65	1,441	0.3%	-17.4%	78	88
69	Toyota RAV4	364	0.3%	-49.7%	71	2,361	0.5%	-24.6%	52	44
70	Skoda Kamiq	357	0.3%	-35.6%	63	1,543	0.3%	-28.5%	75	61
71	Ford Fiesta	351	0.3%	-61.9%	55	1,656	0.3%	-69.8%	65	49
72	Volvo XC40	322	0.3%	-59.0%	59	1,879	0.4%	-34.1%	60	54
73	Kia Xceed (est)	320	0.3%	15.1%	106	1,031	0.2%	-3.7%	95	94
74	Audi A1	318	0.3%	-67.2%	62	1,802	0.4%	-44.2%	64	55
75	Fiat Panda	313	0.3%	-18.3%	n/a	1,424	0.3%	-23.8%	79	84
76	Skoda Octavia	311	0.3%	-55.7%	n/a	1,324	0.3%	-52.5%	84	68
77	Ford Focus	307	0.3%	-22.7%	76	1,586	0.3%	-17.4%	70	81
78	Volvo XC60	303	0.3%	-42.7%	74	1,305	0.3%	-23.0%	88	76
79	Opel Grandland	302	0.3%	-26.3%	79	1,206	0.3%	-46.0%	90	89
80	BMW Série 3	295	0.3%	-51.4%	70	1,584	0.3%	-16.6%	71	80

Source: PFA, AAA Data