Model Y in second place
In May, the Dacia Sandero was the best-selling new car in Europe, according to figures from Jato. It is the second month in a row that the Sandero takes the lead. The previous number 1, the Tesla Model Y, is close behind the Sandero.
There is a fierce battle going on at the top of European sales figures this year between two cars that look almost nothing alike: the Dacia Sandero and the Tesla Model Y. In January the Sandero was at the top, in February and March it was the Tesla Model Y and in April the Sandero came back to the top. Also in May, it was again the Dacia that came out on top, according to new figures from Jato.
21,745 Dacia Sandero’s were sold in the 28 European countries where Jato takes the figures from, where a total of more than 1.12 million cars were sold in May. The growth compared to May last year is also striking, because Dacia sold no less than 78 percent more Sanderos than in May 2022. The facelift probably plays a role in this, as does the expansion of the range with the Extreme version.
The Tesla Model Y, Europe’s best-selling car in the first quarter, closely followed the Sandero. Last month, 21,530 units of the electric SUV were sold. In third place was the Volkswagen T-Roc, of which 18,333 were sold in May. The Peugeot 208 continues to perform well, coming in fourth place, followed by the recently facelifted Renault Clio.
Best selling cars Europe May 2023
| Fashion model | Sales quantity | Growth compared to May ’22 |
| 1.Dacia Sandero | 21,745 | + 78 percent |
| 2. Tesla Model Y | 21,530 | – |
| 3. Volkswagen T-Roc | 18,333 | + 7 percent |
| 4.Peugeot 208 | 18,157 | – 1 percent |
| 5.Renault Clio | 18,078 | +87 percent |
| 6. Vauxhall Corsa | 17,405 | – 4 percent |
| 7.Toyota Yaris | 15,741 | + 26 percent |
| 8.Volkswagen Golf | 15,424 | + 3 percent |
| 9.Skoda Octavia | 15,183 | + 189 percent |
| 10.Peugeot 2008 | 14,845 | + 26 percent |
Volkswagen was, as always, the best-selling car brand in Europe. BMW came in second last month and did significantly better than in April, when it still occupied fifth place. Toyota remains in third place and Audi drops from second to fourth place. Renault also drops a spot compared to April and is now in fifth place. All brands in the top 10, except Ford, recorded growth compared to May last year.
Most popular car brands Europe May 2023
| Fashion model | Sales quantity | Growth compared to May ’22 |
| 1.Volkswagen | 117,431 | + 15 percent |
| 2.BMW | 69,621 | +29 percent |
| 3.Toyota | 68,257 | +6 percent |
| 4. Audio | 65,431 | + 30 percent |
| 5. Renault | 61,930 | + 30 percent |
| 6.Peugeot | 61,430 | + 10 percent |
| 7.Mercedes | 61,221 | +16 percent |
| 8.Skoda | 57,805 | +38 percent |
| 9.Kia | 50,346 | +6 percent |
| 10.Ford | 48,171 | – 1 percent |
Electric growth
Previously, figures from industry organization ACEA showed that significantly more electric cars were sold last month than in May 2022. Jato’s figures paint a similar picture. In May, 169,091 fully electric cars were sold, a growth of 69 percent compared to last year. Electric cars thus accounted for a 15 percent market share in Europe. With more than 21,000 units, the Tesla Model Y was not surprisingly the (by far) most popular fully electric car. The Volkswagen ID4 (8,543), MG 4 (6,310), Tesla Model 3 (6,204) and Fiat 500e (6,073) round out the top five. A very good first month of May for the MG 4, which was not yet available in May last year.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl