Dacia's Sandero supermini increased sales by 67 percent in the first quarter of this year across Europe, writes Brian Byrne.
That brought sales of the budget car, based on the underpinnings of Renault's Clio, to more than 38,000 units from January through March.*
Ford's Fiesta is the biggest seller in the segment at almost 86,000 units, followed by the Clio with more than 74,000. Volkswagen's Polo is increasing sales and looks set to tip past the Clio into second place.
The Fiesta, Polo, Opel's Corsa, Toyota's Yaris, Citroen's C3 and SEAT's Ibiza all posted increased sales.
But overall sales of superminis across Europe, for the last eight years the largest segment, are forecast to fall this year, due to increased demand for small SUVs like Opel's Mokka and Peugeot's 2008.
*In Ireland, the Sandero was launched in January 2013. The quarter-on-quarter comparisons show a 56 percent increase in units sold for 2014, to 198. Ford's Fiesta, by comparison, increased by 19 percent to 1,588 units. The conclusion is that, even in a recession, Irish buyers are reluctant to do budget.
