In the merry month of May, Germans celebrated their new-found love for das Auto. Europe’s largest auto market grew 22 percent year-on-year and 14.4 percent month-on-month. That according to just released statistics by the German Kraftfahrtbundesamt.
Amongst the German brands, only Mercedes (-0.1 percent) is a laggard. All other German brands grew by the double digits. Porsche jumped 44.5 percent, Opel grew 36.1 percent.
Hyundai is the largest Asian brand with 2.8 percent share YTD.
The tsunami affected not all Japanese brands. Nissan, Toyota, Mitsubishi and Suzuki grew. Mazda, Honda, Subaru and Daihatsu lost sales.
Germans want their big cars again. The Upper class grew 69 percent, SUVs climbed 53.2 percent.
| Rank | Brand | Units May | Share May | Change | Units YTD | Share YTD |
| 1 | VW | 67,613 | 22.2% | 25.0% | 295,045 | 22.1% |
| 2 | BMW, Mini | 29,346 | 9.6% | 27.6% | 119,864 | 9.0% |
| 3 | Mercedes | 26,755 | 8.8% | -0.1% | 110,939 | 8.3% |
| 4 | Opel | 25,883 | 8.5% | 36.1% | 106,652 | 8.0% |
| 5 | Audi | 24,055 | 7.9% | 23.8% | 102,118 | 7.7% |
| 6 | Ford | 21,338 | 7.0% | 27.6% | 96,634 | 7.2% |
| 7 | Renault, Dacia | 13,543 | 4.4% | 5.2% | 67,180 | 5.0% |
| 8 | Skoda | 14,201 | 4.7% | 29.7% | 60,143 | 4.5% |
| 9 | Hyundai | 7,853 | 2.6% | 22.2% | 37,614 | 2.8% |
| 10 | Fiat | 9,934 | 3.3% | 13.6% | 36,562 | 2.7% |
| 11 | Peugeot | 9,069 | 3.0% | 18.1% | 36,171 | 2.7% |
| 12 | Toyota,Lexus | 5,933 | 1.9% | 11.9% | 35,050 | 2.6% |
| 13 | Nissan, Infiniti | 5,954 | 2.0% | 61.4% | 31,377 | 2.4% |
| 14 | Citroen | 7,845 | 2.6% | 29.6% | 30,145 | 2.3% |
| 15 | Seat | 5,296 | 1.7% | 37.7% | 24,025 | 1.8% |
| 16 | Mazda | 3,375 | 1.1% | -19.9% | 19,934 | 1.5% |
| 17 | Suzuki | 2,892 | 0.9% | 26.2% | 14,977 | 1.1% |
| 18 | Kia | 3,639 | 1.2% | 21.1% | 14,869 | 1.1% |
| 19 | Volvo | 3,034 | 1.0% | 56.8% | 14,686 | 1.1% |
| 20 | Mitsubishi | 2,815 | 0.9% | 72.5% | 14,194 | 1.1% |
| 21 | Smart | 3,178 | 1.0% | 15.6% | 13,379 | 1.0% |
| 22 | Honda | 1,740 | 0.6% | -37.7% | 12,880 | 1.0% |
| 23 | Chevrolet | 3,421 | 1.1% | 135.8% | 11,631 | 0.9% |
| 24 | Porsche | 1,860 | 0.6% | 44.5% | 7,717 | 0.6% |
| 25 | Alfa Romeo | 1,030 | 0.3% | 113.3% | 4,925 | 0.4% |
| 26 | Subaru | 380 | 0.1% | -27.6% | 3,544 | 0.3% |
| 27 | Land Rover | 674 | 0.2% | 40.1% | 2,719 | 0.2% |
| 28 | Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge | 421 | 0.1% | -39.8% | 2,091 | 0.2% |
| 29 | Daihatsu | 392 | 0.1% | -2.5% | 1,702 | 0.1% |
| 30 | Jaguar | 274 | 0.1% | -8.4% | 1,214 | 0.1% |
| 31 | Lada | 134 | 0.0% | -24.7% | 1,048 | 0.1% |
| 32 | Lancia | 72 | 0.0% | -45.9% | 483 | 0.0% |
| Others | 594 | 0.2% | 2.1% | 2,685 | 0.2% | |
| Total | 306,578 | 100.0% | 22.0% | 1,333,351 | 100.0% |
All data are available for download here.
“With Newfound Vigor”
Someone found an Acura Vigor in Germany?
Ist das ein deutsches Auto? Nein, Acura.
Ahhhhh, Acura…
Hahaha, that was great. Didnt know that one yet.