In the first quarter of 2018, European passenger car sales are up just 0,8% to 4,26 million, with Spain (+10,5%) as the biggest contributor to the growth, with Germany (+4%) and France (+2,9%) also in the black, while car deliveries declined in Italy (-1,5%) and most notably the UK (-12,4%). The new EU member states showed strong growth of 11.9% so far this year. Crossover sales are up 18,7% in Q1, while car models lost 4,3% and MPVs lost 20,7% as automakers are replacing their MPVs with crossovers to follow a shift in demand.
The biggest winner among manufacturers is VW Group with almost 50.000 additional sales, followed by Hyundai-Kia with a growth of just over 18.500 sales and Suzuki at nearly +3.600 sales. Biggest losers are Ford Motor Company and FCA with more than 10.000 fewer sales than in the first quarter of last year, and Tata Motors with close to 10.000 fewer sales of mostly its Jaguar and Land Rover brands. In relative terms, SAIC is the fastest growing manufacturer at +66,5% despite the decline of overall UK car sales, the only market in Europe where it is currently present. Hyundai-Kia and Suzuki both improve by more than 5,5%. Aston Martin is hit hard with 42,4% fewer deliveries as the DB11 was still brand new last year and the new generation Vantage didn’t start customer deliveries yet. Both Indian automakers are suffering losses in Europe with Tata Motors down 12,6% and Mahindra & Mahindra down 8,7% with its SsangYong brand.
At brand level, Peugeot is the big winner with nearly 25.000 additional sales but this is offset by a loss of over 26.000 sales at Opel/Vauxhall. Volkswagen and Skoda add a combined 40.750 sales, while Fiat loses close to 20.000 sales and Nissan is down by almost 17.000 sales. Even though it has no official factory representation in Europe, Dodge is the fastest growing brand as sales quadrupled over last year. Chevrolet, down to a few sports cars and XL SUVs, is up by almost 90% and so is Lamborghini. In the losers aisle we find Infiniti down a very painful 60%, followed by the British sports car brands Lotus and Aston Martin, both down by more than 40%.
Q1 winners and losers
| Manufacturer biggest volume increase | Volkswagen Group | 49.389 | Manufacturer biggest volume lost | Ford Motor Comp. | -16.512 | |
| Hyundai-Kia | 18.556 | Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles | -10.831 | |||
| Suzuki | 3.590 | Tata Motors | -9.718 | |||
| Manufacturer biggest % increase | SAIC | 66,5% | Manufacturer biggest % lost | Aston Martin | -42,4% | |
| Hyundai-Kia | 7,2% | Tata Motors | -12,6% | |||
| Suzuki | 5,6% | Mahindra & Mahindra | -8,7% | |||
| Brand biggest volume increase | Peugeot | 24.545 | Brand biggest volume lost | Opel/Vauxhall | -26.167 | |
| Volkswagen | 21.379 | Fiat | -19.950 | |||
| Skoda | 19.481 | Nissan | -16.794 | |||
| Brand biggest % increase | Dodge | 295,5% | Brand biggest % lost | Infiniti | -59,9% | |
| Chevrolet | 89,0% | Lotus | -45,5% | |||
| Lamborghini | 88,4% | Aston Martin | -42,4% |
For the first time ever, Volkswagen Group sold more than 1 million cars in Europe in the first quarter, thanks to an increase of 5,2%. PSA sees stable sales as the gains at Peugeot are offset by the losses at Opel/Vauxhall. Similarly, at Renault-Nissan the gains at Dacia are offset by losses at Nissan, keeping group sales stable. Ford Motor Company is down 5,2% and FCA is down 3,6%. Hyundai-Kia gains 7,2% and overtakes BMW AG for the #6 spot in Europe. BMW‘s rival Daimler AG is down by a similar percentage of nearly 1,5%. Suzuki passes Mazda for 11th place as both Japanese automakers jump ahead of Tata Motors.
Q1 group ranking
| Group | 2018 | 2017 | change | 2018 share | 2017 rank | |
| 1 | Volkswagen Group | 1.005.672 | 956.283 | 5,2% | 6,5% | 1 |
| 2 | PSA | 693.277 | 690.714 | 0,4% | 4,5% | 2 |
| 3 | Renault-Nissan | 613.241 | 613.312 | 0,0% | 4,0% | 3 |
| 4 | Ford Motor Comp. | 298.796 | 315.308 | -5,2% | 1,9% | 4 |
| 5 | Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles | 290.843 | 301.674 | -3,6% | 1,9% | 5 |
| 6 | Hyundai-Kia | 276.784 | 258.228 | 7,2% | 1,8% | 7 |
| 7 | BMW AG | 267.248 | 271.243 | -1,5% | 1,7% | 6 |
| 8 | Daimler AG | 252.091 | 255.578 | -1,4% | 1,6% | 8 |
| 9 | Toyota Motor | 207.401 | 206.109 | 0,6% | 1,3% | 9 |
| 10 | Geely Group | 80.879 | 80.376 | 0,6% | 0,5% | 10 |
| 11 | Suzuki | 68.011 | 64.421 | 5,6% | 0,4% | 13 |
| 12 | Mazda | 67.609 | 64.432 | 4,9% | 0,4% | 12 |
| 13 | Tata Motors | 67.583 | 77.301 | -12,6% | 0,4% | 11 |
| 14 | Honda | 45.056 | 44.341 | 1,6% | 0,3% | 14 |
| 15 | Subaru Corp. | 9.116 | 9.413 | -3,2% | 0,1% | 15 |
| 16 | Tesla Motors | 6.224 | 6.433 | -3,2% | 0,0% | 16 |
| 17 | Mahindra & Mahindra | 4.667 | 5.110 | -8,7% | 0,0% | 17 |
| 18 | SAIC | 1.775 | 1.066 | 66,5% | 0,0% | 18 |
| 19 | General Motors | 719 | 783 | -8,2% | 0,0% | 20 |
| 20 | Aston Martin | 546 | 948 | -42,4% | 0,0% | 19 |
Peugeot is the big winner in the top-10 and moves ahead of Opel/Vauxhall which is the big loser in the top-10. Fiat loses two places, to BMW and Audi, with the latter also dropping behind the former as Mercedes-Benz remains the luxury brands leader. In the top-15, Skoda is the big winner, closing in on the top-10 while Nissan drops two places behind Skoda and Citroën. Dacia and Seat are the big winners in the top-20, both gaining over 15%, while Jeep and Mini each grow by more than 50% just outside of the top-20, the former passing Mitsubishi and the latter passing Land Rover and Honda. Lancia-Chrysler is in trouble with a loss of 36%, dropping behind Porsche. Dodge sold almost as many cars in the first quarter as Chevrolet, despite not having official factory representation in Europe. New brand Alpine sold 38 copies of its modern A110 in the first quarter of 2018.
Q1 brands ranking
| Brand | 2018 | 2017 | change | 2018 share | 2017 rank | |
| 1 | Volkswagen | 461.709 | 440.330 | 4,9% | 10,8% | 1 |
| 2 | Ford | 298.796 | 315.308 | -5,2% | 7,0% | 2 |
| 3 | Renault | 285.765 | 289.653 | -1,3% | 6,7% | 3 |
| 4 | Peugeot | 268.602 | 244.057 | 10,1% | 6,3% | 5 |
| 5 | Opel/Vauxhall | 247.926 | 274.093 | -9,5% | 5,8% | 4 |
| 6 | Mercedes-Benz | 228.249 | 229.844 | -0,7% | 5,4% | 6 |
| 7 | BMW | 212.984 | 218.838 | -2,7% | 5,0% | 9 |
| 8 | Audi | 211.540 | 220.216 | -3,9% | 5,0% | 8 |
| 9 | Fiat | 207.283 | 227.233 | -8,8% | 4,9% | 7 |
| 10 | Toyota | 194.709 | 193.913 | 0,4% | 4,6% | 10 |
| 11 | Skoda | 193.188 | 173.707 | 11,2% | 4,5% | 12 |
| 12 | Citroën | 165.219 | 159.118 | 3,8% | 3,9% | 13 |
| 13 | Nissan | 159.247 | 176.041 | -9,5% | 3,7% | 11 |
| 14 | Hyundai | 143.370 | 132.708 | 8,0% | 3,4% | 14 |
| 15 | Kia | 133.414 | 125.520 | 6,3% | 3,1% | 15 |
| 16 | Dacia | 129.796 | 111.964 | 15,9% | 3,0% | 16 |
| 17 | Seat | 117.774 | 101.733 | 15,8% | 2,8% | 17 |
| 18 | Volvo | 80.696 | 80.071 | 0,8% | 1,9% | 18 |
| 19 | Suzuki | 68.011 | 64.421 | 5,6% | 1,6% | 20 |
| 20 | Mazda | 67.609 | 64.432 | 4,9% | 1,6% | 19 |
| 21 | Mini | 54.092 | 35.915 | 50,6% | 1,3% | 23 |
| 22 | Land Rover | 46.975 | 53.805 | -12,7% | 1,1% | 21 |
| 23 | Honda | 45.056 | 44.341 | 1,6% | 1,1% | 22 |
| 24 | Jeep | 40.968 | 27.110 | 51,1% | 1,0% | 25 |
| 25 | Mitsubishi | 35.506 | 30.281 | 17,3% | 0,8% | 24 |
| 26 | Alfa Romeo | 24.935 | 21.573 | 15,6% | 0,6% | 28 |
| 27 | Smart | 23.842 | 25.734 | -7,4% | 0,6% | 26 |
| 28 | Jaguar | 20.608 | 23.496 | -12,3% | 0,5% | 27 |
| 29 | Porsche | 20.246 | 18.924 | 7,0% | 0,5% | 30 |
| 30 | Lancia-Chrysler | 13.751 | 21.473 | -36,0% | 0,3% | 29 |
| 31 | Lexus | 12.691 | 12.196 | 4,1% | 0,3% | 32 |
| 32 | DS | 11.530 | 13.446 | -14,2% | 0,3% | 31 |
| 33 | Subaru | 9.116 | 9.413 | -3,2% | 0,2% | 33 |
| 34 | Tesla | 6.224 | 6.433 | -3,2% | 0,1% | 34 |
| 35 | SSangYong | 4.572 | 4.987 | -8,3% | 0,1% | 35 |
| 36 | Maserati | 2.319 | 3.121 | -25,7% | 0,1% | 37 |
| 37 | SAIC MG | 1.775 | 1.066 | 66,5% | 0,0% | 40 |
| 38 | Infiniti | 1.708 | 4.264 | -59,9% | 0,0% | 36 |
| 39 | Lada | 1.219 | 1.109 | 9,9% | 0,0% | 39 |
| 40 | Ferrari | 833 | 813 | 2,5% | 0,0% | 42 |
| 41 | Bentley | 823 | 1.171 | -29,7% | 0,0% | 38 |
| 42 | Aston Martin | 546 | 948 | -42,4% | 0,0% | 41 |
| 43 | Chevrolet | 482 | 255 | 89,0% | 0,0% | 51 |
| 44 | Dodge | 443 | 112 | 295,5% | 0,0% | 49 |
| 45 | Lamborghini | 373 | 198 | 88,4% | 0,0% | 46 |
| 46 | Cadillac | 223 | 229 | -2,6% | 0,0% | 43 |
| 47 | Rolls Royce | 172 | 225 | -23,6% | 0,0% | 44 |
| 48 | DR | 163 | 121 | 34,7% | 0,0% | 48 |
| 49 | Lotus | 120 | 220 | -45,5% | 0,0% | 45 |
| 50 | Mahindra | 95 | 123 | -22,8% | 0,0% | 47 |
| 51 | Geely | 63 | 85 | -25,9% | 0,0% | 50 |
| 52 | Alpine | 38 | 0 | New | 0,0% | – |
| 53 | Bugatti | 4 | 2 | 100,0% | 0,0% | 53 |
| 54 | Great Wall | 1 | 3 | -66,7% | 0,0% | 52 |
European car sales statistics are from the following countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom. They exclude vehicles registered as commercial vehicles. Source: ANDC, JATO Dynamics