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AAA Auto breaks record, group sold 83,000 cars last year
Czechs bought almost 50,000 cars from the ‘Triple A’; the Octavia was the most popular model
Prague, 7 January 2019 – The AAA AUTO network has broken its eleven-year sales record: in 2018 the AURES Holdings group, of which AAA AUTO is a part, sold almost 83,000 cars.Sales of 50,000 cars in the Czech Republic confirmed the group as the second largest domestic car seller after Škoda Auto.In Poland, the AAA AUTO network sold half as many cars again as in 2017, more than 9,000.
‘We beat the previous record from 2007, when we sold 79,000 cars in the Central European region.In 2018 it was almost 83,000, and that’s a very good result given the gradual slowdown in the economy.Compared to last year we grew by approximately a tenth, most of all in Poland, by 53%.Overall, our sales have more than doubled in the last ten years’, says Karolína Topolová, chief executive officer and chairwoman of the board of directors of AURES Holdings, which operates the AAA AUTO international network of car dealerships. Sales in AAA AUTO’s Polish branches are rising continuously every month. In 2018, the group sold 9,254 used cars in Poland, i.e. over 3,000 more than in 2017. AAA AUTO currently has eight branches in Poland, and 46 in the group as a whole.
(Sales of cars in the AAA AUTO network have more than doubled since 2009)
The Škoda Octavia clearly became the most popular car. In the Czech Republic and Slovakia, it is in first place by a large margin, while in Poland and Hungary it is in third and fourth place respectively. In the Czech Republic and Slovakia, the second and third places are occupied by two very popular models, the Škoda Fabia and Volkswagen Passat. It is very interesting that, whereas the smaller Škoda is in second place in the Czech and Slovak Republics and fourth in Poland, in Hungary the car is not in the TOP 10 at all. This is not the only curiosity in Hungary. The ten most popular models there include cars that do not appear in the TOP 10 in the other three countries. They are, for example, the Suzuki Swift in second place, the Opel Corsa in fifth and the Suzuki Ignis in sixth. The Opel Astra comes first in Poland and Hungary. The Ford Focus, in second or third place, is also very popular there.
TOP 10 Best-selling cars in the AAA AUTO network in 2018
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Czech Republic
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Slovak Republic
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Poland
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Hungary
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Škoda Octavia |
Škoda Octavia |
Opel Astra |
Opel Astra |
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Škoda Fabia |
Škoda Fabia |
Ford Focus |
Suzuki Swift |
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VW Passat |
VW Passat |
Škoda Octavia |
Ford Focus |
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Škoda Superb |
VW Golf |
Škoda Fabia |
Škoda Octavia |
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Hyundai i30 |
KIA Ceed |
VW Golf |
Opel Corsa |
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Ford Focus |
Opel Astra |
Renault Clio |
Suzuki Ignis |
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VW Golf |
Škoda Superb |
Renault Megane |
VW Passat |
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Ford Mondeo |
Ford Focus |
VW Passat |
VW Golf |
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Škoda Yeti |
KIA Sportage |
Ford Mondeo |
Ford Mondeo |
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Renault Megane |
Renault Megane |
Hyundai i30 |
BMW 3 |
The popularity of hatchbacks with Czech customers was confirmed, and in 2018 they became the most frequently chosen option, selected by 32.7% of drivers. There was a slight year-on-year improvement of 1.2%. There was a markedly bigger jump by estate cars (7.9%). Despite the higher growth, however, they occupied second place (28.4%). The biggest increases (21.9% and 18.3%) were for the ever more popular SUVs and MPVs, which were chosen by 13.6% and 11.4% of customers. 7.6% of clients wanted a sedan.
Even though it was only by the lowest possible difference of one per cent, the winners this year were cars powered by a petrol engine. This variant was selected by 51% of customers, with a year-on-year increase in interest in such cars of 5.1%. Last year, 49% of clients wanted a diesel engine under their bonnet. Although diesel engines were less popular this year, they did enjoy higher year-on-year growth, of 8.5%.
Cars with manual transmission maintain pride of place, having been purchased by 84% of AAA AUTO’s customers in 2018, an increase of 4.5% increase compared to 2017. There was a marked increase in cars with automatic transmission, which were chosen by 21.1% more people compared to the previous year. 16% of customers purchased cars with easier gear shifting.
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The AAA AUTO group has been active on the market for 27 years. It operates a network of 46 branches in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Hungary. Over its lifetime it has served over 2.2 million customers. The group sells approximately 80,000 cars a year and is therefore the largest used car dealer in Central and Eastern Europe. It also sells ‘nearly new’ cars under the revived Mototechna brand. The company regularly ranks among the CZECH TOP 100 and Czech 100 Best. In 2017 and 2018 it won the prestigious Superbrands award and came second in the pan-European European Business Awards 2016/2017. The AAA AUTO group is owned by the British-Polish investment fund Abris Capital Partners.The AAA AUTO and Mototechna brands are an official partner of the top Czech football league – the Fortuna liga.
