Crossovers gain over Estates

Skoda Octavia Combi 

European buyers in the compact segment are shifting out of estates and into Crossover type vehicles according to analysis by Jato, the organisation that keeps tabs on automotive statistics across the Continent.

Only two brands showed an increase over 2012, the Kia cee'd sport wagon whose almost 40,000 units represented a 15% increase, and Hyundai's i30 wagon at nearly 29,000, a small 1% increase.

The biggest selling compact wagon with 115,000 units was the Skoda Octavia Combi, down 3 percent from 2012, followed by the Ford Focus (-7%) VW's Golf (-1%), Opel's Astra (-20%) and Renault's Megane (-26%).

Wagons account for 10 percent of compact car sales in Europe.

Kia cee'd Sports Wagon