If the French car market collapsed after the Covid-19 crisis, things seem to be getting better from the end of summer 2022. Numbers registration has started to rise again and we are seeing a 10% increase in February.

Electric cars are growing

Starting from 2020, the automotive market, like the rest of the sectors, was strongly affected by the crises that followed one after the other. The semiconductor shortage, exacerbated by the global health crisis, has caused countless production delays due to missing parts, among other things. In the end, the coup de grace was inflicted by the start of the war in Ukraine and the explosive growth in the cost of raw materials.

But things seem to be getting better since the beginning of the year. In the period from February 2022 to February 2023, there were almost 9.41% of additional registrations, increasing this indicator to 126,327 against 115,383 a year ago.

And a significant portion has been seduced by sales of electrified vehicles, as they account for a quarter of sales! It is logical, given the preservation of state aid in this direction. We will remind, from January 1, 2023 now €5,000 for electric vehicles up to €47,000. If the thermal vehicles are still resisting, the current context plays against them. Indeed, between the environmental penalty, the weight penalty, the new ZFE or even the upcoming ban that aims to ban thermal power in Europe by 2035, our internal combustion engines are surviving as best they can.

The best-selling cars in France since the beginning of the year

1. Peugeot 208
2. Dacia Sandero
3. Renault Clio 5
4. Peugeot 2008
5. Peugeot 308
6. Renault Kaptur
7. Citroen C3
8. Peugeot 3008
9. Toyota Yaris Cross
10. Dacia Spring

Differences between manufacturers

On the other hand, if the overall growth is around 10% for the month of February, the results are not the same for all manufacturers.

At Stellantis, for example, the group recorded a 3.98% drop between February 2022 and 2023. And this is largely thanks to Citroën, which has a poor performance. The number of registrations of the chevron sign fell by 23.71% compared to only 9,136 units were sold. We also note Fiat underperforming Stellantis with a 12.92% drop in sales. Peugeot, DS, Opel, Maserati and Alfa Romeo are doing well and recording quite clear growth compared to the previous year.

Other producers are also seeing declines. This applies to Tesla (down by -5.78%) and Suzuki (-21.91%). During the same period, some see a sharp increase in sales. For example, Toyota, which registered an increase of 25.81%, as well as Volkswagen with +21.78%, Renault with +21.24%, Nissan +35.36%, Mitsubishi with +79, 49% and finally Ford with an increase of 9.45%. BMW remains stable with a result comparable to last year’s result for this period.