November sales figures: weakness persists

October picked up slightly, but November again scores very poorly in the registration of new passenger cars, according to the most recent figures from Bovag and RAI Association. On the other hand, the advance of electric cars is continuing well. And we welcome a new brand: Aiways.

Last November, 33,499 new passenger cars were given a Dutch registration number, compared to 39,092 a year earlier. That means a minus of 14.3 percent, bringing the cumulative score for this eventful year to -22.3 percent. A total of 313,501 new passenger cars have been registered up to and including 30 November this year.

Just like last month, all three of our lists are led by Volkswagen. The ID3 was last month the country’s most registered model and the country’s most registered EV and that makes VW as a brand number 1 in November 2020. Also cumulatively, Volkswagen is head and shoulders at the top with 35,391 units, compared to 31,114 units of the number. 2, Opel. Of course, there are also dealer demos, but a spokesperson for the importer assures us when asked that of the cars registered so far (4,882), about 90 percent are actually in the driveway of an end user. Anyone who ever drives on the A2 between Den Bosch and Eindhoven can hardly have missed the huge field of ID3s behind Classic Park in Boxtel. To meet the demand for the turn of the year, Pon has purchased quite a few First Editions that are stored here and there.

In any case, the good news is that the advance of electric cars, partly thanks to the changing tax regulations on 1 January, is continuing well. The EV figures presented to us at the time of writing are through November 29, so the exact figures will follow later, but we can count on one in five passenger cars registered last month was an EV. Outside our tables, but nevertheless nice to report is the arrival of a new name in the sales statistics. The Chinese Aiways put 45 units of the U5 on Dutch registration. Furthermore, a fresh Swedish wind with the Volvo XC40 P8 and the Polestar 2 that are very successful.

The detailed sales figures with analysis can be found in Techzle 50, which will be published on December 9.