Sedans

The D Premium segment should suffer from SUV cannibalization, but it actually grew by 6%, versus 2.9% for the whole market. Same results in the E Premium segment, which grew by 7%. A bit of softness can be found in the less prestigious D & E offering where far behjind the Skoda Octavia ogre, sales are overall declining by 6%.

Hybrids & Electric cars

The share of alternative/hybrid cars is increasing, but more so through the sales of hybrid versions of mainstream models than dedicated models such as the Prius. New models such as the Ampera & Leaf are not making a breakthrough. Sales of the Fisker Karma seem to be running out of steam after the first wave of early adopters, monthly registrations sank from 14 in April and May to 4 from June through August, then only 1 to 2 cars per month since September. This does not quite look like momentum. It will be interesting to see whether the Tesla Model S does better in 2013.

Compacts

Compact cars in the B & C segment are under pressure. Easy to notice, harder to diagnose. Media and economic context ? Migration of customers toward SUVs ? Backlash from an excellent 2011 year and replacement purchases anticipated because of euro-bonuses ? These segments represent a third of total volume, and growth is clearly not coming from them.

Liens

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