Rising sales of the Adam city car in 2013 helped Opel and Vauxhall increase their market share in Europe in 2013, despite a declining auto market.
In recent years, Opel has struggled to maintain market share because of a lack of new products and management disruption. The carmaker launched the Adam a year ago hoping to revive sales in Europe, where buyers now prefer smaller cars that are cheaper to buy and run.
Opel said that its European market share (including sister brand Vauxhall) was 5.61 percent in 2013, up from 5.59 percent in 2012, according to preliminary sales data. In Germany, the brand expanding its market share from 6.9 percent to 7 percent.
The introduction of the Opel Adam had an important role in the brand’s increased deliveries last year, according to with Peter Christian Kuespert, Opel's vice president of sales and after-sales. In Germany, Opel sold 21,000 Adam city cars last year, while sales of the Mokka compact crossover reached 20,000 units.
The subcompact segment represented the biggest slice of the market in 2013, totaling about 25 percent of new car registrations last year, according to data from JATO Dynamics. Opel still has to replace the Corsa subcompact, which is one of the oldest products being offered in Europe. Launched in 2006, the Corsa competes with more modern vehicles like the Renault Clio, Ford Fiesta and Peugeot 208. Corsa sales declined 14 percent in 2012.
By Dan Mihalascu
Story References: Reuters
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