Germany In May 2011: With Newfound Vigor Up 22 Percent
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.
RankBrandUnits MayShare MayChangeUnits YTDShare YTD1VW67,61322.2%25.0%295,04522.1%2BMW, Mini29,3469.6%27.6%119,8649.0%3Mercedes26,7558.8%-0.1%110,9398.3%4Opel25,8838.5%36.1%106,6528.0%5Audi24,0557.9%23.8%102,1187.7%6Ford21,3387.0%27.6%96,6347.2%7Renault, Dacia13,5434.4%5.2%67,1805.0%8Skoda14,2014.7%29.7%60,1434.5%9Hyundai7,8532.6%22.2%37,6142.8%10Fiat9,9343.3%13.6%36,5622.7%11Peugeot9,0693.0%18.1%36,1712.7%12Toyota,Lexus5,9331.9%11.9%35,0502.6%13Nissan, Infiniti5,9542.0%61.4%31,3772.4%14Citroen7,8452.6%29.6%30,1452.3%15Seat5,2961.7%37.7%24,0251.8%16Mazda3,3751.1%-19.9%19,9341.5%17Suzuki2,8920.9%26.2%14,9771.1%18Kia3,6391.2%21.1%14,8691.1%19Volvo3,0341.0%56.8%14,6861.1%20Mitsubishi2,8150.9%72.5%14,1941.1%21Smart3,1781.0%15.6%13,3791.0%22Honda1,7400.6%-37.7%12,8801.0%23Chevrolet3,4211.1%135.8%11,6310.9%24Porsche1,8600.6%44.5%7,7170.6%25Alfa Romeo1,0300.3%113.3%4,9250.4%26Subaru3800.1%-27.6%3,5440.3%27Land Rover6740.2%40.1%2,7190.2%28Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge4210.1%-39.8%2,0910.2%29Daihatsu3920.1%-2.5%1,7020.1%30Jaguar2740.1%-8.4%1,2140.1%31Lada1340.0%-24.7%1,0480.1%32Lancia720.0%-45.9%4830.0%Others5940.2%2.1%2,6850.2%Total306,578100.0%22.0%1,333,351100.0%All data are available for download here.
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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