Sharp drop in sales during August 2019

Not that it was unexpected, the severe fall in registrations in August 2019 places new car sales at 2008 levels

It was to be expected that, comparatively, registrations during the recent and concluded month of August 2019 would show lower sales volumes than in the same month of the previous year.

Due to the entry into force of the new WLTP homologation protocol, cars that did not meet the environmental requirements could end up in a limbo from which they would hardly be able to escape, unless through an unprecedented discount campaign or by dealerships registering units in stock before 1 September 2018, in order to sell those cars as nearly-new or zero-kilometre vehicles.

That rush to clear every car that did not comply with WLTP led to unprecedented sales, an unusual number of registrations for the quintessential summer month.

August 2018 was set to be definitive and devastating for 2019, since, barring a surprise, it would make the comparison between present and past negative, all that happened compared with 2017, because in the eighth month of the year before the current one, sales rose by 48 percent compared with the same month of 2017, which translates into 107,692 cars being registered.

But 2019 arrived and, even with the readjustment of WLTP itself, the RDE cycle, sales have not received that boost in the form of discounts or promotions for those vehicles that are struggling to comply with the new regulations.

Almost a third fewer new registrations

Indeed, at the close of 31 August, in Spain 30.8 percent fewer cars were registered than in the same period of 2018. In total, 74,490 units.

But the overall sales tally for 2019 also shows a negative sign. In the cumulative total for the eight months elapsed so far this year, sales of new cars have fallen by 9.2% with 883,649 cars registered.

The market for ECO and ZERO vehicles is growing

Although, without doubt, the most positive note in these dismal figures is the trend towards sustainable vehicles.

The best-selling cars in August 2019

Despite the decline, the list of best-selling cars in the previous month makes it clear that the leaders are holding their positions. The Dacia Sandero remains the car with the highest number of registrations, followed by the Nissan Qashqai, while the Renault Clio rises considerably.

On the other hand, the drop of the domestic best-seller, the Seat León, is the most surprising development in this Top 10, falling from 3,534 units sold in July to 1,438 in August.