◆ 18 FEBRUARY 9, 2004 ◆AUTOMOTIVE NEWS EUROPE

Europe swings toward SUVs, minivansMARKET ANALYSIS BY SEGMENT

TURIN – Automakers sold 428,000more specialty vehicles last year inwestern Europe, responding togrowing fragmentation in consumerdemand.

Western European passenger-vehicle sales fell a modest 249,000units, or 1.7 percent, to 14.4 millionlast year, according to data fromJATO Dynamics. But looking at seg-ments within that total, the changewas much more dramatic.

In Automotive News Europe’srevised market segmentation(explanation, Page 19), sales of tra-ditional vehicles – hatchbacks,

sedans and station wagons – fell656,000 units or 5.5 percent.

But automakers boosted sales ofunconventional vehicles – coupes,roadsters, minivans, sport-utilityvehicles exotic cars and multi-spaces such as the Citroen Berlingo– by 16.8 percent last year to nearly3 million units.

These non-traditional vehicle cat-egories, some of which barelyexisted a decade ago, boosted theircombined proportion of the westernEuropean market to 20.6 percentlast year from 17.4 percent in 2002.

Cars shrinkConventional mass-market and

luxury cars declined to 78.5 percentof the market last year from 81.6 percent the year before, to 11.3million units from 12.0 million.

Some patterns emerge from ananalysis of the segments.

In general, premium-brand

automakers did slightly better thanmass-market automakers. Volumebrands lost close to 2 percent of vol-ume last year, compared to 0.9 per-cent for luxury marques.

Traditional European-brandautomakers dominate the tradi-tional car, minivan and premiumsegments, but Asian brands controlvirtually all the top spots in small,compact and large SUV segments.

Of Automotive News Europe’s 20market segments, 11 were up andnine were down in 2003.

The small minivan segmentshowed the biggest increase, up 69.6percent. Growth was mainly fromfull-year availability of the FordFusion and the Opel/Vauxhall Meriva.

There was substantial growthalso for coupes and roadsters, up21.4 percent, and premium SUVs,up 45.3 percent.

The biggest loss occurred in theminicar segment, down 22.3 per-

cent. The only new product in anotherwise aging arena, the FiatPanda, was on sale for only fourmonths of the year.

European buyers seem to pro-gressively walk away from largesedans, down 20.3 percent for thevolume makers and off 11.1 percentin the upper-premium segment.

Shifting marketThe trend was similar but with

lower percentage losses for mid-size sedans, down 9.9 percent forvolume brands in the upper-medium segment and 8.3 percent inthe lower-premium group.

Small and entry-premium are theconventional-car segments suffer-ing the least from the rise in nicheproducts. Small cars gained 5.2 per-cent. Entry-premium matched theoverall market’s 1.7 percent decline.

The only niche segment that lostvolume was small SUVs, off 9.9 per-

cent because of declining sales forthe Honda HR-V and MitsubishiPajero Pinin.

In terms of brands leading themost segments, Renault is the win-ner with four. Its Twingo leads theminicar segment, but Renault alsoleads three other segments that itcreated: compact minivan, Scenic;large minivan, Espace; and multi-space, Kangoo.

Mercedes-Benz leads three seg-ments: medium premium, upperpremium and premium coupe androadsters.

Of the 20 segments, Germanbrands lead in 10, French lead six,Britain one, and Japanese automak-ers the remaining three.

The non-European leaders are allin SUV segments. Suzuki dominatesthe small SUV segment with theJimny, Toyota the compact SUVwith the RAV 4 and Honda the largeSUV with the CR-V.

MINICARThe minicar segment fell to less than

1 million units last year.Manufacturers are letting agingmodels continue longer than beforein an effort to squeeze some smallprofit from a price-sensitive marketplace. Seat will exit minicars

entirely when the Arosa is retired. 2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %

1. Renault Twingo 114,812 140,543 -18.3 14.42. Smart (all) 112,182 110,038 1.9 14.13. Fiat Panda 107,718 103,881 3.7 13.54. Ford Ka 97,428 134,427 -27.5 12.25. Fiat Seicento 96,113 103,308 -7.0 12.16. Citroen Saxo 65,349 151,113 -56.8 8.27. Daewoo Matiz 50,539 58,640 -13.8 6.48. Volkswagen Lupo 43,837 70,756 -38.0 5.59. Peugeot 106 37,263 65,352 -43.0 4.7

10. Suzuki Alto 23,766 15,929 49.2 3.0Segment 795,370 1.023,876 -22.3 -Note: Segment totals include Hyundai Atos/Atoz/Amica, Seat Arosa and DaihatsuCuore/Charade. Segment was 5.5% of 2003 total sales; 7.0% of 2002. total sales.

SMALLThis was the only mass-market car segment to

prosper last year. All top-10 modelsrecorded 6-digit volume. The new

Citroen C3 scored the biggest gain,doubling volume. New cars pushed

the total of entries to 29 inEurope’s No. 1 segment.

2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %1. Peugeot 206 (less CC)491,687 522,689 -5.9 13.42. Renault Clio 461,369 501,908 -8.1 12.63. Opel/Vauxhall Corsa 366,535 422,112 -13.2 10.04. Fiat Punto 361,856 418,118 -13.5 9.95. Volkswagen Polo 344,169 357,146 -3.6 9.46. Ford Fiesta 310,774 294,326 5.6 8.57. Citroen C3 290,666 136,530 112.9 7.98. Toyota Yaris 193,831 195,994 -1.1 5.39. Seat Ibiza 179,981 166,153 8.3 4.9

10. Nissan Micra 171,453 106,476 61.0 4.7Segment 3,658,272 3,478,158 5.2 -Note: Segment totals include Skoda Fabia, Hyundai Getz, Honda Jazz, Daewoo Kalos, SeatCordoba, Suzuki Ignis, Citroen C2, Mazda2, Suzuki Swift, Renault Thalia, Mitsubishi Colt,Mazda Demio, Daihatsu Sirion, Subaru Justy, Fiat Palio, Subaru G3x Justy, Rover CityRover,Fiat Uno and Mazda 121. Segment was 25.3% of total 2003 sales, 24.1% of 2002 sales.

LOWER MEDIUMWhat was once Europe’s biggest segment

lost another big chunk of volume lastyear, falling to 21.7% of the total mar-

ket. The segment lead ing VWGolf fell 17%, but that reflects agenerational changeover late inthe year. But only 8 of the 32

entries boosted sales. 2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %

1. Volkswagen Golf 494,832 596,415 -17.0 15.82. Peugeot 307 (less CC) 440,421 442,705 -0.5 14.13. Ford Focus 440,383 519,451 -15.2 14.14. Renault Megane 354,814 260,228 36.3 11.35. Opel/Vauxhall Astra 350,015 439,309 -20.3 11.26. Fiat Stilo 154,017 175,626 -12.3 4.97. Toyota Corolla 148,529 138,499 7.2 4.78. Citroen Xsara 112,505 169,137 -33.5 3.69. Skoda Octavia 98,625 101,072 -2.4 3.110. Seat Leon 89,244 89,688 -0.5 2.8Segment 3,131,825 3,446,160 -9.1 -Note: Segment totals include Nissan Almera, Honda Civic, VW Bora, VW New Beetle, Kia Rio, Rover25, Hyundai Accent, Mazda 323, MG ZR, Chrysler PT Cruiser, Subaru Impreza, Mazda3, MitsubishiLancer, Daewoo Lanos, Rover Streetwise, Chrysler Neon, Fiat Albea, Toyota Prius, Suzuki Baleno,Peugeot 306, Fiat Bravo/Brava. Segment was 21.7% of total 2003 sales, 23.5% of total 2002 sales.

UPPER MEDIUMMost top entries lost ground in 2003 in

this shrinking segment. The all-newVectra came close to catching

No. 3 Renault Laguna. Andthe Toyota Avensis and newMazda6 passed the aging Peugeot 406.

2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %1. Volkswagen Passat 259,362 286,075 -9.3 18.32. Ford Mondeo 199,370 250,316 -20.4 14.13. Renault Laguna 182,592 247,474 -26.2 12.94. Opel/Vauxhall Vectra 179,616 154,971 15.9 12.75. Citroen C5 105,299 145,731 -27.7 7.46. Toyota Avensis 102,472 77,024 33.0 7.27. Mazda6 91,948 34,424 167.1 6.58. Peugeot 406 82,994 113.199 -26.7 5.99. Nissan Primera 58,533 77,405 -24.4 4.1

10. Seat Toledo 31,906 36,433 -12.4 2.3Segment 1,414,741 1,570,054 -9,9 -Note: Segment totals include Honda Accord, Rover 45, Mitsubishi Carisma, Skoda Superb,Hyundai Elantra, Daewoo Nubira, MG ZS, Kia Shuma, Subaru Legacy, Subaru Outback, FiatMarea, Kia Sephia/Mentor, Mazda 626. Segment was 9.8% of total 2003 sales, 10.7% of2002 total sales.

LARGESales of volume-brand large cars continue to

erode badly as automakers switch theirattention to lower-premium models.

The medium-premium groupnow has 5 times the volumeas large. It’s a bloodbath forthe 17 cars that share only 104,000 sales.

2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %1. Rover 75 30,307 30,382 -0.2 29.02. Peugeot 607 18,510 23,141 -20.0 17.73. Opel/Vauxhall Omega 15,289 27,704 -44.8 14.64. Renault Vel Satis 13,468 18,466 -27.1 12.95. MG ZT/ZT-T 7,813 5,482 42.5 7.56. Hyundai Sonata 4,088 3,707 10.3 3.97. Mitsubishi Galant 3,339 5,673 -41.1 3.18. Kia Magentis 2,618 2,274 15.1 2.59. Toyota Camry 2,401 4,634 -48.2 2.3

10. Renault Avantime 2,226 5,037 -55.8 2.1Segment 104,377 131,026 -20.3 -Note: Segment totals include Daewoo Evanda, Nissan Maxima, Hyundai XG, Daewoo Leganza,Kia Opirus, Mazda Xedos 9, Honda Legend. Segment was 0.7% of total 2003 sales, 0.9% of2002 sales.

COUPE & ROADSTERCoupes and roadsters sales are soar-

ing, driven by a revolution in manu-facturing techniques for convertiblesand roofing systems. Innovativevehicles such as the Citroen Plurielalso help boost volume. But thesegment is still characterized by

low-volume niche vehicles. Vehicles can age quickly in this fickle marketplace.

2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %1. Peugeot 206 CC 59,794 71,896 -16.8 33.72. Citroen C3 Pluriel 23,081 6 - 13.03. Mazda MX-5 19,977 19,024 4.0 11.34. Hyundai Coupe 14,459 18,838 -23.3 8.15. Ford StreetKa 13,814 0 - 7.86. MG TF 12,380 10,017 23.6 7.07. Toyota Celica 8,540 9,446 -9.6 4.88. Peugeot 307 CC 5,751 0 - 3.29. Toyota MR2 3,628 4,152 -12.6 2.0

10. Mazda RX-8 3,002 0 - 1.7Segment 177,557 146,273 21.4 -Note: Segment totals include Chrzsler Sebring, Nissan 350Z, Honda S2000, Opel/VauxhallSpeedster, all Lotus, Chrysler Crossfire, Fiat Barchetta, Chevrolet Corvette, Daihatsu Copen,Chevrolet Camaro, others. Segment was 1.2% of total 2003 sales, 1.0% of total 2002 sales.

SMALL MINIVANThree fresh entries turned this fledgling

niche into a booming segment. TheMeriva cracked the 100,000-

unit mark in its first full year,and the Ford Fusion nearly did

so too. The new Fiat Idea sug-gests more gains in the future.

2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %1. Opel/Vauxhall Meriva 112,107 30 - 27.22. Ford Fusion 96,569 20,249 377 23.43. Opel/Vauxhall Agila 70,568 75,834 -6.9 17.14. Mitsubishi Space Star 36,932 42,074 -12.2 9.05. Suzuki Wagon R+ 35,406 42,021 -15.7 8.66. Hyundai Matrix 32,194 34,258 -6.0 7.87. Toyota Yaris Verso 21,599 22,379 -3.5 5.28. Fiat Idea 3,427 0 - 0.89. Daihatsu YRV 2,570 4,521 -43.2 0.6

10. Daihatsu Move/G. Move 449 1,523 -70.5 0.1Segment 411,821 242,889 69.6 -Note: Segment was 2.9% of 2003 total sales, 1.7% of 2002 total sales.

COMPACT MINIVANThe middle of the minivan market recorded

a strong gain in a down market overall.But it was the belated entry ofVolkswagen into the heart of thegenre that produced all the gainsfor the group. Except for the ToyotaCorolla Verso and VW’s Golf-basedTouran, every other top competitor

suffered sales erosion.2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %

1. Renault Scenic 250,317 256,441 -2.4 26.82. Opel/Vauxhall Zafira 224,728 242,295 -7.3 24.13. Citroen Xsara Picasso 198,099 214,478 -7.6 21.24. Volkswagen Touran 91,602 7 - 9.85. Toyota Corolla Verso 43,731 41,069 6.5 4.76. Nissan Almera Tino 30,083 38,525 -21.9 3.27. Mazda Premacy 22,091 25,892 -14.7 2.48. Fiat Multipla 21,305 31,639 -32.7 2.39. Kia Carens 19,252 7,498 156.8 2.1

10. Ford Focus C-Max 18,399 0 - 2.0Segment 932,503 876,746 6.4 -Note: Segment totals include Daewoo Rezzo/Tacuma, Honda Stream, Kia Joice, Nissan Serena.Segment was 6.5% of total 2003 sales, 6.0% of total 2002 sales.

LARGE MINIVANThis specialty segment turned in an excellent year, grow-

ing 14.2% despite minimal invest-ments for most players. Because

7 of the top 12 vehicles in thesegment share 2 platforms,extra volume is a real bonusfor beleaguered automakers.

Even the aging Ford-VW-Seat trio did well.

2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %1. Renault Espace/ 63,497 48,013 32.2 18.1

Grand Espace2. Volkswagen Sharan 43,189 51,354 -15.9 12.33. Ford Galaxy 38,812 46,065 -15.7 11.04. Peugeot 807 30,545 6,917 341.6 8.75. Chrysler Voyager/GV 28,588 31,191 -8.36. Citroen C8/Evasion 25,380 11,210 126.4 7.27. Seat Alhambra 23,971 23,806 0.7 6.88. Kia Carnival/Sedona 22,383 19,214 16.5 6.49. Toyota Avensis Verso 15,245 17,567 -13.2 4.3

10. Fiat Ulysse 14,702 7,431 97.8 4.2Segment 351,383 307,705 14.2 -Note: Segment totals include Hyundai Trajet, Lancia Phedra, Mazda MPV, Toyota Previa,Hyundai H-1/Starex/Satellite/Plaza, Mercedes-Benz V class, Mitsubishi Space Wagon,Chevrolet Trans Sport. Segment was 2.4% of total 2003 sales, 2.1% of total 2002 sales.

LUCA CIFERRI

AUTOMOTIVE NEWS EUROPE

Opel/Vauxhall Meriva

Renault Scenic

Rover 75Peugeot 206

Volkswagen PassatRenault Twingo

Renault Espace

Citroen C3 Pluriel

Volkswagen Golf

Fragmenting marketfavors the non-typicalover familiar sedans

ANE

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◆ FEBRUARY 9, 2004 AUTOMOTIVE NEWS EUROPE 19 ◆

MARKET ANALYSIS BY SEGMENTENTRY PREMIUM

A new Audi A3 captured the lead in thissegment from the aging A class. The

relatively young Mini from BMWalso moved up, but a modelchangeover in Lancia’s entryand the sagging sales of the A2dropped the overall group’s

volume lower. 2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %

1. Audi A3/S3 131,097 107,229 22.3 23.12. Mercedes A class 130,051 149,327 -12.9 22.93. BMW Mini 116,797 105,730 10.5 20.64. Alfa Romeo 147 92,459 95,354 -3.0 16.35. Lancia Y 60,187 79,758 -24.5 10.66. Audi A2 28,647 39,914 -28.2 5.07. Lancia Ypsilon 8,101 0 - 1.4

Segment 567,339 577,312 -1.7 -Note: Segment was 3.9% of both 2003 and 2002 total sales.

LOWER PREMIUMLast year was not a good one for luxury sedans

in general and that was most apparent in this,the most popular premium segment.

Except for the Saab 9-3, in its first fullyear of availability, all the leaders fell assome buyers took advantage of thenew sports-utility offerings available inthe premium range.

2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %1. BMW 3 series 320,029 350,606 -8,7 31.32. Audi A4/S4/RS4 260,931 274,531 -5.0 25.53. Mercedes C class 220,168 251,173 -12.3 21.54. Volvo S40/V40 67,329 75,146 -10.4 6.65. Alfa Romeo 156 58,492 62,529 -6.5 5.76. Saab 9-3 44,177 37,462 17.9 4.37. Jaguar X-type 26,641 30,958 -13.9 2.68. Lancia Lybra 16,559 22,830 -14.1 1.69. Lexus IS200/300 8,074 9,891 -18.3 0.8

Segment 1,022,400 1,115,126 -8.3 -Note: Segment was 7.1% of total 2003 sales, 7.6% of 2002 sales.

MEDIUM PREMIUMThe top two players extended their lead in

this segment last year. The Mercedes-Benz E class gained the most, but

BMW did well considering it intro-duced a new generation duringthe year. European brands domi-nate. Lexus and Cadillac can’teven pass Lancia.

2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %1. Mercedes E class 191,809 156,317 22.7 34.82. BMW 5 series 102,775 99,395 3.4 18.73. Audi A6/S6/Allroad 89,070 99,229 -10.2 16.24. Volvo V70/XC70 72,466 80,664 -10.2 13.25. Volvo S60 40,447 52,289 -22.6 7.36. Saab 9-5 29,885 35,179 -15.0 5.47. Jaguar S-type 12,296 15,161 -18.9 2.28. Alfa Romeo 166 5,682 8,475 -33.0 1.09. Lancia Thesis 4,955 3,126 58.5 0.9

10. Lexus GS300/430 1,148 1,805 -36.4 0.2Segment 551,032 551,646 -1.7 -Note: Segment totals include Cadillac CTS. Segment was 3.8% of both total 2003 and 2002 sales.

UPPER PREMIUMThe top three models each lost

ground to a trio of second-tierentries with newer products.The Audi A8, Jaguar XJ andnewcomer VW Phaeton notonly closed the gap with the topmodels, but also provided all the

growth in the entire segment.2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %

1. Mercedes S class 18,469 21,331 -13.4 25.32. Volvo S80 15,460 18,420 -16.1 21.23. BMW 7 series 14,905 16,050 -7.1 20.54. Audi A8/S8 11,940 6,893 73.2 16.45. Jaguar XJ 7,218 2,983 142.0 9.96. Volkswagen Phaeton 3,865 2,261 70.9 5.37. Lexus LS430 837 1,104 -24.2 1.18. Cadillac Seville 180 335 -46.3 0.2

Segment 72,874 69,377 5.0 -Note: Segment was 0.5% of both total 2003 and 2002 sales.

EXOTICSSegment leader Porsche 911 suffered some

sales erosion last year when the CayenneSUV was introduced into the

Porsche lineup. With the 911’slarge share, that’s all it took topull the entire exotic rangedown.

2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %1. Porsche 911 13,074 15,339 -14.8 77.72. Ferrari 2,227 2,034 9.5 13.23. Aston Martin 765 796 -3.9 4.54. Bentley 376 482 -22.0 2.25. Lamborghini 204 166 22.9 0.66. Maybach 99 27 267 0.47. Rolls-Royce 76 72 5.6 0.48. Bugatti 2 1 100 -

Segment 16,823 18,917 -11.1 -Note: Segment was 0.1% of total sales in both 2003 and 2002.

PREMIUM COUPE & ROADSTERMercedes-Benz holds a command-

ing lead in this specialty nichewith 4 of the top 10 vehicles.But the BMW Z4 may close thegap on leader CLK class thisyear because it will be avail-able all 12 months. This is asegment that is bound togrow as others add more

convertible tops.2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %

1. Mercedes CLK class 54,305 35,777 51.8 36.42. BMW Z4 22,973 0 - 15.43. Audi TT 20,247 21,407 -5.4 13.64. Mercedes SLK class 14,629 19,039 9.85. Mercedes SL class 13,431 15,116 -11.1 9.06. Porsche Boxster 8,352 9,158 -8.8 5.67. Volvo C70 3,359 4,029 -16.6 2.38. Jaguar XK 2,718 3,177 -14.4 1.89. Mercedes CL class 2,269 2,869 -20.9 1.5

10. Alfa Romeo Spider 1,504 1,667 -9.8 1.0Segment 149,302 127,842 16.8 -Note: Segment totals include all Maseratis, Alfa Romeo GTV, BMW Z3, Lexus SC430, otherBMWs, Honda NSX. Segment was 1.0% of total 2003 sales, 0.9% of total 2002 sales.

PREMIUM SUVHigh-priced SUVs are hard for dealers

to keep in stock. The 2003 vol-ume was boosted by the

arrival or full-yearavailability of the

VW Touareg,Porsche Cayenneand BMW X3, but

most other entriesadded sales any-

how. The biggest loserwas the aging Mercedes G class.

2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %1. BMW X5 42,457 38,650 9.8 22.72. Mercedes M class 37,998 48,873 -22.3 20.33.Toyota Land Cruiser 33,435 17,186 94.5 17.9 4. Volkswagen Touareg 20,436 2,158 847 10.95. Volvo XC90 17,587 1,143 1,439 9.46. L. Rover Range Rover 12,863 12,426 3.5 6.97. Porsche Cayenne 12,269 662 1,753 6.68. Lexus RX300 7,380 5,093 44.9 3.99. Mercedes G class 1,745 2,381 -26.7 0.9

10. BMW X3 675 0 - 0.4Segment 186,845 128,572 45.3 -Note: Segment was 1.3% of total 2003 sales, 0.9% of total 2002 sales.

SMALL SUVThis small segment will expand slightly

next year when Fiat introduces afour-wheel-drive version of the

Panda. The niche is filledwith relatively oldand mostly

imported mod-els, but the clearleader, the Jimny,

is built in Spain forSuzuki by govern-

ment-owned Santana.

2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %1. Suzuki Jimny 21,182 21,541 -1.7 39.02. Mitsubishi Pajero Pinin 8,460 11,372 -25.6 15.63. Daihatsu Terios 7,797 7,010 11.2 14.44. Honda HR-V 6,838 10,291 -33.6 12.65. Lada Niva/Taiga 4,045 3,418 18.3 7.46. Suzuki Samurai 3,986 4,708 -15.3 7.37. Jeep Wrangler 1,990 1,921 3.6 3.7

Segment 54,298 60,261 -9.9 -Note: Segment was 0.4% of both 2003 and 2002 total sales.

COMPACT SUV

The middle of the SUV market wasthe strongest last year, up

8.5%. Increasingly, thesegment is domi-nated by importbrands. The NissanX-Trail passed theLand Rover

Freelander for the No. 3 spot.

2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %1. Toyota Rav4 95,867 88,764 8.0 26.12. Nissan X-Trail 43,171 30,811 40.1 11.83. Land Rover Freelander 42,475 48,535 -12.5 11.64. Suzuki Vitara/G. Vitara 40,028 35,016 14.3 10.95. Hyundai Sante Fe 36,558 32,743 11.7 10.06. Nissan Terrano 19,332 21,611 -10.5 5.37. Jeep Cherokee 17,290 17,179 0.6 4.78. Subaru Forester 15,474 11,654 32.8 4.29. Opel/Vauxhall Frontera 9,575 10,096 -5.2 2.6

10. Land Rover Defender 8,276 7,446 11.1Segment 349,917 322,481 8.5 -Note: Segment totals include Mitsubishi Outlander, Ford Maverick, Mazda Tribute, KiaSportage, Jeep Wrangler. Segment was 2.4% of total 2003 sales, 2.2% of 2002 sales.

LARGE SUVSegment leader Honda CR-V is built in

Swindon, England, as is the LandRover Discovery. But all the

other entries in this grow-ing niche are either

Asian orAmerican-brandimports. Thesegment remains

far too small tosupport any high-

volume locally built models.2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %

1. Honda CR-V 31,443 30,854 1.9 21.52. Mitsubishi Pajero/ 25,352 26,799 -5.4 17.3

Montero/Shogun3. Kia Sorento 22,499 7212 212.0 15.44. Jeep Grand Cherokee 20,681 23,836 -13.2 14.15. Land Rover Discovery 16,864 17,906 -5.8 11.56. Hyundai Terracan 10,864 10,227 6.2 7.47. Mitsubishi Pajero Sport 7,846 8,841 -11.3 5.48. Nissan Patrol GR 5,132 5,548 -7.5 3.59. Suzuki Grand Vitara 2,312 1,773 30.4 1.6

10. Isuzu Trooper 1,103 2,217 -50.2 0.8Segment 146,298 138,680 5.5 -Note: Segment totals include Chevrolet Trailblazer, Chevrolet Tahoe, Ford Explorer, NissanPathfinder, Chevrolet Blazer. Segment was 1.0% of total 2003 sales, 0.9% of total 2002 sales.

MULTISPACE

This niche is strictly passenger ver-sions of light commercial vehicles

to gain some manufacturingefficiency, so any gain like

this year’s 5.1%increase is a bonusfor manufacturers.

2003 2002 Change % Seg. share %1. Renault Kangoo 66,294 70,134 -5.5 31.42. Citroen Berlingo 66,261 60,722 9.1 31.43. Peugeot Partner/Ranch 31,140 21,470 45.0 14.84. Fiat Doblo 20,782 25,807 -19.5 9.85. Mercedes-Benz Vaneo 14,092 15,555 -9.4 6.76. Opel Combo 9,290 7,215 28.8 4.47. Ford Transit Connect 3,218 0 - 1.5

Segment 211,077 200,903 5.1 -Note: Segment was 1.5% of total 2003 sales, 1.4% of total 2002 sales.

Source for all segments: Data from JATO Dynamics; analysis by Automotive News Europe

How segments have changedAutomotive News Europe has greatly revised its European-market segmentation, boosting the number of passenger-vehicle segments to 20 from 11 previously.

The changes, outlined on these two pages, are intended tomake sales analyses sales by segment more useful to readersand to reflect the sweeping reshaping of auto design and func-tion that has taken place in recent years.

Most of the added segments reflect dramatic increases insales of premium-priced vehicles and the boom in minivans,sports-utility vehicles and other specialty cars in recent years.

As before, segments are based primarily on marketing con-siderations – sets of competing vehicles – rather than size,weight, or engine displacement.

Here are the major changes:● Minivans, previously divided into compact and large seg-

ments, now have a third classification, small, led by theOpel/Vauxhall Meriva.

● Multispaces, passenger versions derived from light com-mercial vehicles, such as the Renault Kangoo, CitroenBerlingo and Peugeot Partner/Ranch, now are a segment oftheir own. Previously, they were parts of compact minivans.

● SUVs, previously all in a single segment, are now dividedin four segments, three based on size, small, compact andlarge, plus a fourth, dedicated to premium vehicles.

● The new entry-premium segment reflects the growingnumber of premium cars positioned below lower luxury. Forexample, the Audi A3 has been joined by the Mercedes-BenzA class and Mini, and next year the BMW 1 series.

● The coupe and roadster segment was split, with volume-brand products divided from premium products. Coupes androadsters were kept together because of the growing popular-ity of coupe-cabriolets. Many expect coupe-cabriolets to even-tually become the dominant product in the niche.

Where possible, we tried to avoid the double counting of nichederivatives and mainstream models. For example, the RenaultMegane total in the lower-medium segment doesn’t include theScenic, which is listed in the compact minivan sector.

Renault Kangoo

Honda CR-V

BMW X5

Suzuki Jimny

Toyota RAV4

Porsche 911

Mercedes S class

Mercedes E class

BMW 3 series

MercedesCLK class

Audi A3

Do you agree?This vehicle segmentation is intended to helpreaders, so we’d like to find out if it does.Please e-mail your comments, observationsand suggestions to aneletters@crain.com.

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