Positive Q1 for Russian True Fleet

In a report published by Dataforce earlier this week, analyst Michael Gergen looks back on a very positive first quarter for the Russian True Fleet market.

Following a dramatic decline in passenger car registrations during the economic turmoil in 2015/2016 and a modest recovery in 2017, the turnaround appears to be complete in Q1 2018.

The Total Market was up by 15.9% and the positive momentum was shared by all market channels: Private +16.2%, True Fleets +11.4% and Special Channels +21.6%.

Special Channels, made up of Short-Term Rentals, Dealerships and Manufacturers' registrations, are significantly lower in Russia than in Western European countries, accounting for less than 4% of the total market.

Brand performance

Lada and Toyota remain in the lead for True Fleet and jointly represent a quarter of the market, despite a 0.8% loss for Lada and 1.1% for Toyota compared to the same period last year. Kia (3rd, +16.7%) and Volkswagen (4th) swapped positions and were followed by Dacia and Hyundai who both achieved a double-digit growth rate. The top 10 is completed by local brand UAZ, Skoda (with a strong 30.9% growth), Mercedes and BMW.

The Private Market and the Fleet Market have markedly different model preferences. For instance, the Lada Largus (essentially a rebadged first-generation Dacia Logan MPV, pictured below)  and Toyota Camry were the most popular company cars but only ranked 13th and 20th in the Private Market.

Fuel types

In contrast to most other European countries, diesel-powered car sales went up 28.9%. Nevertheless, the diesel market share is still far below that of any other European country, accounting for a mere 17.7% market share.

In terms of diesel, there are clear differences between brands. LandRover and BMW record a diesel share of 80% and 70% respectively whereas Lada, Chevrolet and Mazda don't offer anything but petrol engines.

Graph and data source: Dataforce