The midsized car segment in Europe grew sharply in 2015 as two of the best sellers were renewed, but that growth has flattened to just 5% in the first nine months of 2016, slower than the overall market at +7,5%. This hasn’t stopped Volkswagen Group to increase its share of the segment from 43,1% last year to 46,2% this year, and occupying the top two spots of the podium. The VW Passat loses 4% but is still ultra dominant with almost one-in-three sales in this segment, followed by the Skoda Superb which almost doubles its volume of last year thanks to the new generation. In Q3 the Opel/Vauxhall Insignia was only 500 units behind the Superb, despite being due for a replacement early 2017. That leaves the Ford Mondeo in fourth place, unable to make a fist against the much older Insignia.
Note: clicking on the model name opens the sales data page for that model; clicking year in the legend turns the display for that year on/off
The Peugeot 508 looks set to hold on to its 5th place this year, but is unlikely to extend that into 2017, as it was outsold in Q3 by the Toyota Avensis and its recently launched French rival Renault Talisman. The Talisman hasn’t even been able to benefit from full availability of its station wagon version, and suffers from missing out of the UK market. Still, a top-5 position should be possible for the model, an unthinkable performance for its predecessor Laguna, tainted by a bad reputation for quality since the terrible early 2000’s and unappealing design of the last generation. The Kia Optima has its eyes set on a top-10 finish this year, ahead of the Citroën C5. The South-Korean player benefits from a new generation, including a station wagon and a plug-in hybrid version, both for the first time ever, while the C5 is slowly phased out without a direct replacement.
Also check out the midsized car segment in the US, where the Japanese dominate the top-3 and the Passat is in 10th place, just ahead of the Legacy.
| Midsized segment | 2016 Q3 | 2015 Q3 | Change | |
| 1 | Volkswagen Passat | 157.039 | 164.411 | -4% |
| 2 | Skoda Superb | 66.241 | 34.063 | 94% |
| 3 | Opel/Vauxhall Insignia | 59.316 | 68.984 | -14% |
| 4 | Ford Mondeo | 56.461 | 60.569 | -7% |
| 5 | Peugeot 508 | 29.775 | 33.740 | -12% |
| 6 | Toyota Avensis | 27.265 | 24.074 | 13% |
| 7 | Mazda6 | 24.018 | 23.999 | 0% |
| 8 | Renault Talisman | 21.657 | 18 | New |
| 9 | Hyundai i40 | 16.468 | 19.090 | -14% |
| 10 | Citroën C5 | 7.450 | 10.398 | -28% |
| 11 | Kia Optima | 6.346 | 2.293 | 177% |
| 12 | Subaru Legacy / Outback | 6.291 | 8.180 | -23% |
| 13 | Subaru Levorg | 3.919 | 806 | 386% |
| 14 | MG6 | 366 | 490 | -25% |
| 15 | Renault Laguna | 131 | 7.119 | -98% |
| 16 | Honda Accord | 43 | 1.827 | -98% |
| 17 | Opel/Vauxhall Ampera | 35 | 215 | -84% |
| 18 | Chevrolet Malibu | 5 | 4 | 25% |
| 19 | Seat Exeo | 2 | 7 | -71% |
| Segment total | 482.828 | 460.403 | 5% |
Click on any model to see its annual sales from 1997-2016 and monthly sales from 2012 to 2016, or use the dropdown menu in the top right of this site.
Car sales statistics are from the following countries: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland.
Sources: Manufacturers, ANDC, JATO Dynamics.
South Korea single handedly buys more Talisman’s than the EU: 45.000 till October. 5500k per month.
The sales of midsize cars in Europe are dismal.
Even the Passat doesn’t sell big numbers compared to the best seller in the US market.