Russia Overtakes Germany To Be The 3rd Largest Automarket In The World

Russia Overtakes Germany To Be The 3rd Largest Automarket In The World
t's a remarkable landmark for Russia's development as a consumer market. According to figures published July 9 by consultancy PricewaterhouseCoopers, Russia recently overtook Germany to become the largest car market in Europe. PwC notes that some 1.645 million new cars were registered in Russia during the first half of 2008, compared with 1.63 million cars in Germany. "The Russian auto market is still witnessing an astonishing growth," the report concludes.

Russia certainly has come a long way since Soviet days. Back then, cars were a luxury enjoyed by a minority who had to wait for years to acquire locally made Ladas and Volgas. It's a very different story now, as Russia's increasingly affluent consumers splash out on new sets of wheels, helped by cheap credit and oil-fueled economic growth. As any visitor to Moscow can tell you, Russian roads are now crammed (and all too often jammed) with vehicles of every description. Nowadays, most of them are of Western or Asian design, from sturdy Renault compacts, to chunky Mitsubishis and Chevrolet Jeeps, to high-end Mercedeses and BMWs.


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BostonBiosafetyBostonBiosafety - 7/14/2008 10:54:46 AM
-2 Boost

Just like China makes more motorcycles than all the other brands combined....crappy product, hence no world wide interest.


pushrod27pushrod27 - 7/14/2008 11:25:21 AM
+6 Boost
i think you missed the point. '3rd. largest car market'; it's not about Russian cars. It's about the Russian consumers buying more cars, from all automakers all over the world.


I95SPEEDINGTICKETSI95SPEEDINGTICKETS - 7/14/2008 3:48:08 PM
0 Boost
How is it Legal for people to be so Stupid ?

BostonIdiot....

Read the article before going to the comment box.


Agent63Agent63 - 7/15/2008 1:59:44 AM
+1 Boost
Hope your words aren't racial biased.


charlik05charlik05 - 7/14/2008 12:32:41 PM
+2 Boost
Russian taste in cars is a very simple one. the brand and the options. Brands are mercedes, bmw, lexus, maybach, bentley, toyota and nissan and infiniti.

options have to be fully loaded. colors are black on black or black on beige or sometimes other colors.

russians are more into the prestige of the car than the quality of it. also showing off is a natural russian thing.

this also goes for former soviet republics.

this is my main demographic i sell cars to. i sell locally in the new york russian market and export plenty of cars every month to the russian buyers.




Htay7500Htay7500 - 7/14/2008 12:44:12 PM
+5 Boost
keep up the humor MT!


Htay7500Htay7500 - 7/14/2008 6:16:54 PM
+1 Boost
svx is correct. read CNNs take:
http://money.cnn.com/2007/06/15/pf/most_expensive_cities/index.htm


Agent63Agent63 - 7/15/2008 2:01:55 AM
+3 Boost
MichaelTaylor is a troll. If I saw him on the road I would probably just run him over. Troll no more.


Agent63Agent63 - 7/15/2008 11:23:35 AM
+1 Boost
If you weren't a troll you wouldn't be so hated on this website and have countless deboosting on every comment you make. You speak solely on your own opinion not facts. You speak solely based on reviews that magazines or people on Youtube have done but you have no experience yourself. You drive a Camry V6 and it's no where close to what a Lexus is so in terms of luxury so if you don't even own a Lexus or have driven one where are your opinions coming from? I think somebody here is a bandwagoner.


TECHGEEKTECHGEEK - 7/14/2008 12:08:24 PM
+2 Boost
Michael Taylor, you are wrong.
Mexico and Canada might be looking upto the US for stuff but West Europe looking up to Russia is kind of a joke...Germany,France,Italy,Switzerland,Spain & Great Britain to look upto Russia for what ?
West Europe does not even have to look up to America with the kind of technology they have.

Take into account the size of Russia and Germany - Russia is the largest country in the world - and Germany is incredibly small, almost the size of New York State....What matters is Per Capita and not the total nos. India and China have a higher GDP than most of the West European Countries etc. but does that mean they are better - NO.
Europe has the highest Per Capita Income and Standard of life in the World.
By the way, I am from the USA and thanks.


MercedesBenz00ZMercedesBenz00Z - 7/14/2008 8:22:47 PM
+2 Boost
True. Like, who needs America these days?

Japan and Europe are far ahead of us


VISOVISO - 7/14/2008 9:55:35 PM
+1 Boost
No Charlik05, Audi and Mercedes-Benz are the top selling premium brands in Russia ahead of BMW and Lexus. Please keep it real. Russia is one of Audi's fastest growing markets.


Htay7500Htay7500 - 7/14/2008 12:41:28 PM
0 Boost
Moscow is the most expensive place to live in (last time I checked). gas is quite a bit cheaper than in the EU. most of the consumers LOVE stickshifts and account for most mainstream brands (toyota, ford, etc) and lots of luxury brands have opened up there.


I95SPEEDINGTICKETSI95SPEEDINGTICKETS - 7/14/2008 3:50:01 PM
+1 Boost
Quick Trip to London will cure you of your Hallucination.

London is THE MOST EXPENSIVE city to live & work in.


SVXXXSVXXX - 7/14/2008 5:40:25 PM
+1 Boost
I95 and Homer you guys need to come up to date...
Moscow is the up there in top 5. And in some prestigious ranking is the #1.


Htay7500Htay7500 - 7/14/2008 6:17:15 PM
+1 Boost
svx is correct. read CNNs take:
http://money.cnn.com/2007/06/15/pf/most_expensive_cities/index.htm




AudiphileAudiphile - 7/14/2008 12:47:46 PM
+2 Boost
Agent 009,

Interesting article.

One minor point, however. What exactly is a "Chevrolet Jeep"? This vehicle was mentioned at the end of the second paragraph of this article. Is this some sort of joint venture between GM & Chrysler for the Russian market?


neutralneutral - 7/14/2008 1:27:55 PM
+2 Boost
I've noticed in my travels to SE Europe, all 4x4's or SUV's are referred to as "Jeeps". If someone says they have a jeep and you ask "what kind", they may respond Opel Antara or Jeep Cherokee.


pushrod27pushrod27 - 7/14/2008 3:01:25 PM
+1 Boost
A lot of people use the term 'jeep' as a general term for suvs. the same way people will say 'kleenex' when referring to facial tissue, or 'pampers' when speaking of disposable diapers.


sectorsector - 7/14/2008 12:57:08 PM
0 Boost
Russia's come a long way in the last decade or so... it wasn't too long ago people were lining up for food and food market shelves were nearly empty over there.

Russia holds the world's largest natural gas reserves, the second largest coal reserves, and the eighth largest oil reserves so they'll continue to prosper.

Same with India a China. By 2050 India's middle class will exceed 250 million people, that means demand for consumer goods of any kind will grow exponentially.


AudiphileAudiphile - 7/14/2008 1:22:03 PM
+1 Boost
Agent 009,

A very interesting article.

One minor question, however. Look at the last sentence of the second paragraph of this article. What the hell is a "Chevrolet Jeep"?

Did the author mean to write "Chrysler Jeep"? Or is this vehicle a GM-Chrysler joint venture for the Russian market? Or is it some other kind of mistake?


Agent009Agent009 - 7/14/2008 1:53:36 PM
0 Boost
nuetral responded correctly. Overseas SUV's can be coined as Jeep's.

Very similar to asking for a Kleenex vs a tissue here.


chewychewy - 7/15/2008 1:09:02 AM
+1 Boost
Yep, jeep=SUV in Russia. And most foreing cars cost about double what they do in US because of taxes. A 550i starts at 111,000 dollars for example.


Agent63Agent63 - 7/15/2008 2:01:04 AM
+1 Boost
I'm not surprise that Russia is a huge market. Look at the country it's HUGE!. They have so much more room for expansion whereas the rest of Europe is crowded like Manhattan.


ChicaneShooterChicaneShooter - 7/16/2008 4:09:45 AM
+1 Boost
the country is huge terrritorially. but not in population. it is people who buy things.

but it is true that russia IS GETTING very rich, very fast. due to 1) oil and gas reserves and 2) the capitalist spirit bursting free of restraint (ditto china).
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