By Andrea Hargraves 
The Volkswagen T-Roc was the best-selling model in Europe in July, according to data compiled by Dataforce. The German brand has sold 19,130 units of this small SUV that is produced in Autoeuropa, in Palmela (in the Setúbal region), which is a 15% annual increase compared to the same month in 2021.
Portugal has the exclusive right to this model (except for the Chinese market and Issuance CabrioletMade in Osnabrück, Germany) designed primarily for the European market. Cumulatively, sales of the T-Roc in 2022 are down 14% compared to sales a year ago, but this car Made in Portugal is Volkswagen’s best-selling model in Europe, with 105,939 units sold between January and July. In second place is the Volkswagen Golf, with 104,315 units.
European driving doesn’t match in Portugal, with the T-Roc being only the 41st-selling model between January and June (behind other brands’ models like T-Cross and Polo). This model was designed primarily for export which, since it began production, has led Autoeuropa to its best production cycle, with successive records in the number of units assembled.
In August, Wolfsburg introduced a new version of the T-Roc, in a special edition Dedicated to the Portuguese marketbaptized Volkswagen T-Roc @pt. However, in Portugal, Peugeot has been the commercial leader since last year – and still is, according to data from the national market for August, released this afternoon by ACAP – Associação Automóvel de Portugal.
The numbers indicate that after a very difficult semester (By 9.4% year-on-year), August sales started growing again, pushing the national market up for the second month in a row.
In July, there were 16,897 new registrations, an annual increase of 18.8%. It follows August (the month when sales volume is usually lower) with 13,214 new registrations, a 32.1% year-over-year increase.
Looking at the main market, passenger cars, 11,349 new cars were registered, which is a more expressive increase of 42.4% year-on-year.
In the soft goods market, sales fell 20.2% to 1,450 units. In heavy vehicles, sales have practically doubled compared to last year, with 415 new registrations (+93%).
Despite these positive year-to-year differences, ACAP notes that the auto market is still far from pre-pandemic values. This is because, between January and August, the market gained 120,093 new cars and “still registers a 36.3% decrease compared to the same period in 2019”.
In terms of energy, 9.9% of new light passenger vehicles are electric (BEV), according to the ACAP, in a statement. In the first half of the year, BEV . market share was already 10%.
Gasoline cars have the largest market share this year, among passenger cars, accounting for 43.2% of sales. Cars with diesel engines account for 18.4% of sales and so-called alternative energies are the remaining 38.4%, with 9.6% being hybrids. delivery in (PHEV) and 16% hybrid non-rechargeable (HEV).
By brand, Peugeot continues to lead the monthly and annual sales of passenger cars, with Renault in second place, ahead of Mercedes, Toyota and BMW, which occupy third, fourth and fifth positions in the monthly and annual sales rankings.