European sales 2017-Q1 Exotic and Sports Car segments

Sales of exotic cars in Europe have exploded in the first quarter of 2017, with a growth of 45% to over 2.100 units. And after years of domination by the Bentley Continental GT and Ferrari 458 Italia, we have a new segment leader, straight out of the box. With almost a quarter of total segment sales, the all-new Aston Martin DB11 has stormed to the top of the ranking, ahead of the Ferrari 488 which maintains its second place thanks to a sales growth of 35%, while the former segment leader Continental GT is kicked down to third place with stable sales. Never before has an Aston Martin topped the exotic car segment in Europe, but the DB11 is an obvious hit with affluent buyers. It has turned the two-horse race at the top of the ranking into a three-way, as the top-3 dominates the segment with 68,3% of total sales as the #3 sells more than triple the volume of its closest rival.

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

Aston Martin is on a roll this year, as the Vanquish also grows by almost 50%, closing in on the 4th place of the Lamborghini Huracan, which improves with double digits but slower than the segment as a whole. The Ferrari F12 is down as the new 812 Superfast will arrive later this year, promising even more speed and improved handling. The Rolls Royce Wraith coupe rebounds from a loss in 2016 and reclaims its position above its convertible version Dawn. We have another newcomer in the top-10: the all-new Honda NSX with 53 sales, while the Ferrari GTC4Lusso is already close to matching the volume of its predecessor Ferrari FF in the same period last year. Bugatti has sold 2 units of its latest hypersports Chiron.

2017-Q1 Exotic car sales Europe

	Exotic car segment	2017-Q1	2016-Q1	Change
1	Aston Martin DB11	526	0	New
2	Ferrari 488 GTB	462	342	35%
3	Bentley Continental GT / GTC	455	452	1%
4	Lamborghini Huracan	129	102	26%
5	Aston Martin Vanquish	113	77	47%
6	Ferrari F12	86	105	-18%
7	Rolls Royce Wraith	71	56	27%
8	Lamborghini Aventador	65	75	-13%
9	Rolls Royce Dawn	65	0	New
10	Honda NSX	53	0	New
11	Aston Martin DB9	30	108	-72%
12	Ferrari GTC4Lusso	30	0	New
13	Ferrari FF	7	33	-79%
14	Ferrari 458 Italia	4	39	-90%
15	Bugatti Chiron	2	1	100%
	Segment total	2.114	1.459	45%

Large Sports car segment

Sales of large sports cars are down again in the first quarter of 2017, after being stable in 2016. The dominant segment leader Porsche 911 declines faster than the rest of the segment and dips below 50% share again. Even though the Jaguar F-type increases its sales 16%, it’s still a very distant #2 to the 911. Behind it, the Mercedes-Benz SL returns to the bottom step of the podium with sales up 35% after its facelift. Its distant relative Mercedes-AMG GT loses more than half of its volume as customers awaited the top-of-the-line GT R as well as the GT Roadster. As a result, the Audi R8 moves up to fourth place despite sales down 10%. The BMW i8 is also down, but the launch of a Spider version should give the nameplate a boost again. The two Maserati models are finally showing their age and losing more than 30% of their volume.

2017-Q1 large sports car sales Europe

	Large sportscar segment	2017-Q1	2016-Q1	Change
1	Porsche 911	3.474	4.048	-14%
2	Jaguar F-type	1.433	1.232	16%
3	Mercedes-Benz SL	503	373	35%
4	Audi R8	469	520	-10%
5	Mercedes-AMG GT	371	812	-54%
6	BMW i8	293	441	-34%
7	Aston Martin V8/V12 Vantage	227	201	13%
8	Ferrari California	167	169	-1%
9	Maserati GranCabrio	50	71	-30%
10	Maserati GranTurismo	47	77	-39%
11	Jaguar XK	1	0	–
	Segment total	7.035	7.944	-11%

Small Sports car segment

The small sports car segment does slightly better at -4% as we see big differences in the fortunes of individual models. The same 3 models still occupy the top-3, but the top spot of the Audi TT is under severe threat of the Mazda MX-5, helped by the addition of the RF version with the retractable hardtop. In fact, the MX-5 was Europe’s best selling sports car in March. In January, that title went to the Ford Mustang by a single unit ahead of the small Japanese roadster. Now that the novelty of the Mustang has worn off, it will be interesting to see if it can maintain its momentum or if it’s been a one-day fly. The Mustang’s direct rival Chevrolet Camaro is way behind in volume as it has a much smaller dealer network, but mroe than quintuples its volume of last year. The MX-5’s platform sibling Fiat 124 Spider is closing in on the fourth place of the Mercedes-Benz SLC as both distance the Porsche 718 Boxster.

The Japanese rear-wheel drive coupes Toyota GT86 and Nissan 370Z are both in the top-10 as the latter is closing in on its lighter and less powerful rival. The GT86’s clone Subaru BRZ shows impressive growht from its low base. The BMW Z4 has already been out of production for more than 6 months, but dealers are still selling off their stock models, keeping it in the top-10 for now.

2017-Q1 small sports car sales Europe

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	Compact sportscar segment	2017-Q1	2016-Q1	Change
1	Audi TT	4.652	6.349	-27%
2	Mazda MX-5	4.541	4.255	7%
3	Ford Mustang	3.658	4.039	-9%
4	Mercedes-Benz SLC	2.435	715	241%
5	Fiat 124 Spider	2.317	0	New
6	Porsche Boxster	1.948	1.579	23%
7	Toyota GT86	383	395	-3%
8	Nissan 370Z	312	255	22%
9	Chevrolet Camaro	270	49	451%
10	BMW Z4	194	914	-79%
11	Mercedes-Benz SLK	186	1.787	-90%
12	Alfa Romeo 4C	186	307	-39%
13	Subaru BRZ	151	98	54%
14	Lotus Exige	95	86	10%
15	Lotus Elise	84	68	24%
16	Porsche Cayman	52	1.233	-96%
17	Lotus Evora	39	49	-20%
18	Peugeot RCZ	3	280	-99%
	Segment total	21.506	22.458	-4%

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.