Ford Beats Volkswagen At Its Favorite Game
Should your travels bring you to Wolfsburg in the near future, do yourself a favor, don’t mention “Cologne.” Don’t say anything about “Köln.” For goodness gracious, don’t mention Ford. Even colloquialisms such as “ich mach mich fort” (“I’m outta here”) should be avoided. Any of the above would get you an icy stare at a minimum. Or a uniformed Werkschutz escort to the factory gate at Wache Sandkamp. The boys in Wolfsburg carry a deep grudge against Ford. Ford beat Volkswagen at Golf.
The Volkswagen Golf, Europe’s perennial top seller ( 5 times in 10 years,) has been kicked off the podium by the Ford Fiesta. The Fiesta is officially Europe’s best-selling car in March, even for the first quarter 2010. That according to the latest figures from JATO Dynamics, a provider of automotive data. Brought to you via a press release from, dare we say it, Cologne.
According to the figures compiled by JATO Dynamics, 68,630 Ford Fiestas were sold in March, a 25.8 percent increase from the same month last year, and almost 11,800 units ahead of its nearest rival, the Volkswagen Golf.
In the first quarter of 2010, JATO records that 140,496 Ford Fiestas were sold – over 5,400 units ahead of its nearest rival.
No fuzzy math this time. This time it’s serious.
David Di Girolamo, head of JATO Consult warns that things might change: “The last time Fiesta was ahead of Golf in European sales was March 2009, so it remains to be seen whether it can hold top position this time round.” Because, says Di Girolamo, “there remains the shade of scrappage in these figures, so we need to remain cautious.”
Scrappage? You better believe it. Germany, where the Golf rules the roost, slumped in sales in the first quarter, while Germany is weaning itself off the Abwrackprämien-addiction. All the while Italy and the UK, where the Fiesta is strong, celebrated the fiesta of the expiring scrappage incentives. Gobble, gobble: Their cold turkey is right around the corner.
Luca Ciferri, the Automotive News man in Europe, recommends to celebrate while the celebrating is good. “From April, Fiesta sales will slow down both in Italy and UK. Even though the German market will remain weak throughout 2010, the Golf will rebuild its lead comfortably.” Ciferri is a betting man:” My bet is that 2010 will again be the year of the Golf.” Ciferri didn’t say, how much he will bet.
The Top 10 of the best-selling cars and brands across Europe in March, according to JATO:
1 Ford Fiesta
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
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So they are selling these in the USA already? Have not seen a SINGLE Fiesta yet. I've seen TWO Astras since they came out. Maybe 4 Rabbits. Maybe 5 EOS. Pretty easy to be exclusive around here (rural TN, town of 60K, regional pop of 250K and were the hub). Going to drive home via the Ford dealership and see what is on the lot. Plenty of Asian cars around here.
Fiesta comes in 3 door and 5 door bodystyles - take your pick. The Golf is a C-segment car, the Fiesta is B-seg. The Ford Focus is the direct competitor against the Golf. These figures are simply reflecting that UK (Ford's biggest European market) are closing out on gov't incentivised sales and to a lesser extent Italy (where Ford are also strong). Interestingly, Ford have published data to show that people pay extra for those vibrant colours. Think it's popular with the laydeez. Something about making a fashion statement. Clearly I don't come from that demographic ;-) Top 5 cars in Europe, March 2010 Ford Fiesta 68,630 VW Golf 56,845 Renault Clio 43,879 Opel/ Vauxhall Corsa 41,724 Peugeot 207 40,895