As the dust settles on 2007 it's time to look back at who were the winners and losers of what turned out to be a surprisingly healthy year for car sales.
According to figures from industry data firm JATO Dynamics, the overall European market grew by just under 1% which, while it doesn't sound like much, is "a significant achievement" according to a JATO spokesman.
So much of the industry waffle, what about the figures? Well, VW remains at the top of the brand leaderboard, having sold just over 1.6 million cars on the European market. GM comes in second with 1.3 million, Ford just 36,000 sales behind in third. Of the top 10 manufacturers only Renault and Peugeot recorded overall falls in sales, although they maintained their respective rankings of fourth and fifth. And the cars? Well, GM, Volkswagen and Peugeot are going to be happy but don't expect the same cheer at Renault. The full results are as follows -
1st: Peugeot 207 (437,505, +105.5%)
2nd: Volkswagen Golf (435,055, +4.5%)
3rd: Ford Focus (406,557, -7.5%)
4th: Opel/Vauxhall Corsa (402,173, +41.7%)
5th: Opel/Vauxhall Astra (402,044, -7.9%)
6th: Renault Clio (382,041, -11.5%)
7th: Fiat Punto (377,989, -5.9%)
8th: Ford Fiesta (300,566, +0.6%)
9th: Volkswagen Passat (300,566, -9.4%)
10th: BMW 3 Series (295,312, +2%)
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