Dacia Sandero surprisingly turns the situation in its favor and climbs back to the 1st place in Europe

The Dacia Sandero managed to turn around the results in the European market, at the same time as a big drop in the main rival, the Tesla Model Y. In October, the Sandero was again the best-selling car in Europe, while the electric SUV from Tesla it didn’t even make the Top 10, reveals the data analyzed by Profit.ro.

Dacia Sandero sales rose surprisingly in October, to approximately 21,100 units, with an increase of 37.7% compared to October 2022, after the pace of registrations had slowed down in the last 2-3 months. The model produced in Mioveni and in Morocco far surpassed the main competitors, but the biggest disappointment comes from the Tesla Model 3, which sold less than 10,000 units in October, a result that places it only in 24th place and confirms the system of deliveries in waves that Tesla adopted.

Renault Clio (14,500 units), Toyota Yaris Cross (14,400), Peugeot 2008 (14,200) and Citroen C3 (14,100) were next in line for the month, according to preliminary data from Data Force. With a volume of 13,400 cars, the Ford Puma was in 8th place, confirming the very high demand that this volume also registers.

At the opposite pole was the Dacia Duster, which is facing the effects of the generation change, customers being tempted to postpone their purchase until the appearance of the new model. With around 9,300 units, Duster dropped 7.5 percent from last year and ranked 26th.

Following this new context, Dacia Sandero once again climbed to the highest position for the entire year, with 184,100 units sold between January and October, 20.4% more than last year. Tesla, which has accumulated about 183,800 units, remained the second best-selling car in Europe for now, but the final data and sales of the last two months of the year could undoubtedly change the hierarchy. The 3rd place VW T-Roc has a difference of around 20,000 cars, and the 4th place Peugeot 208 registers with only 1000 vehicles less than the 3rd place.

This year’s good pace and the growth of almost 16 percent have also moved the Ford Puma into the ranking of the 10 best-selling cars in Europe, with 128,400 units, which means that by the end of the year the model produced in Craiova will probably exceed the 150,000 mark of cars sold.

Dacia Sandero is in its third year of life and remains the best-selling car in Europe in the retail segment, i.e. that of individuals. Even though its price has risen slightly in the past two years amid the semiconductor crisis and raw material prices, the car is mostly sold in the Stepway version, which is perceived as a B-segment crossover by customers, competing with big B names -SUVs, such as T-Roc, 2008 or Captur.