While the first place winner of the previous month crashes, the Porsche 911 climbs back to the top. A new Swabian competitor is getting stuck at the top.
New passenger car registrations in January 2023 add up to 179,247 cars, a drop of 2.6 percent compared to the same month last year. The sports car segment, on the other hand, bucked the market trend at the beginning of the year.
The Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) in Flensburg recorded 2,488 newly registered sports cars for the reporting month - a figure that is 62.2 percent better than a year ago. Sports cars remain an absolute niche product. But at least they can double their market share compared to December 2022 to at least 1.4 percent. This value is also well above that for the entire year 2022.
Swabian dominance
The main driver of the growth is the good old Porsche 911. It can more than double its number of new registrations compared to the previous month (836 instead of 400). He has two Swabian rivals in tow, with the Mercedes E-Class Coupé beating the new SL this time. The distance between the two stars is comparatively clear; nevertheless, the SL can bite its way into the top group straight away.
Speaking of getting stuck: The Toyota GR86 seems to be establishing itself in the top ten. With 75 new registrations in January 2023, it shares tenth place with the sports car that has had the biggest crash compared to the previous month: in December 2022, the Ford Mustang greeted it from the top with 522 new registrations.
There is also something interesting to report from the end of the table: Although the Nissan GT-R has long since left the German market, one remaining copy or gray import was newly registered in Germany. Even four buyers managed to organize a Subaru BRZ. And that despite the fact that its first generation has long been retired as a new car and the successor is not officially available in Germany.
Note: The registration statistics are official information from the Federal Motor Transport Authority in Flensburg. The division into the respective classes is based on a key number via the manufacturer. Models that are not available on the German market or that are no longer built can also appear in the statistics. This peculiarity can occur in the KBA statistics if, for example, foreign vehicles are registered in Germany for the first time or vehicles receive a new identification number.
Conclusion
In an overall slightly shrinking market, sports cars are the glorious exception this time. Compared to the same month of the previous year, they can increase significantly and consequently win back some of their market share. The Porsche 911 climbs back to its usual top spot, displacing the Ford Mustang from first place. The American even falls down and is just about able to stay in the top ten.
