ACEA: European car market rebounds in February 2026 as Volkswagen leads

The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) has already published European car market sales figures for February 2026 and, after a 3,9% drop in January, the market is now showing early signs of a rebound.

European car market February 2026: registrations across Europe

In February, passenger car registrations increased by 1,7% compared with the same month in 2025, reaching 979 321 units across the EU, EFTA and the United Kingdom - with 865 437 of those registered in the European Union.

Among the biggest national markets, Italy recorded the strongest rise at +14%, followed by Spain (+7,5%), the United Kingdom (+7,2%) and Germany (+3,8%). France was the outlier: it was the only major European market to decline, posting a steep fall of 14,7%.

Volkswagen maintains lead

As expected, Volkswagen ended February as the European market leader with 100 401 registrations, comfortably ahead of the brand in second place. Even so, the German manufacturer mirrored the broader pattern seen among the 10 best-selling brands, slipping 4,2% year on year.

The standout performer for the month was Skoda. The Czech marque lifted registrations by 18,7% - the biggest increase within the Top 10 - to 65 847 units. That result cements second place and widens its gap over Toyota, which held that position a year earlier but now completes the podium with 62 714 units (-2,9%).

Top 10 brands: who gained and who fell back

Despite the market’s slight improvement in February, only a handful of Top 10 brands managed to grow. Beyond Skoda, the only other increases came from Audi (+3%) and Kia (+2,7%).

The sharpest declines were recorded by Dacia (-23,4%), Peugeot (-10,1%) and Renault (-7,3%). The Romanian brand has started the year in difficult fashion and is now close to dropping out of the Top 10: it holds a margin of around 2000 units over FIAT, which surged by 49,4% in February.

Biggest movers outside the Top 10

Beyond the Top 10, the strongest growth was delivered by BYD (+162,3%). Opel also turned in a notably positive result (+30,5%). In the opposite direction, Mitsubishi (-47,6%) and Jaguar (-99,8%) - which currently has no cars on sale - posted the steepest falls.

And year-to-date?

On a year-to-date basis, the car market remains in negative territory (-1%), with total volume at 1,9 million units. The picture among the leading brands looks much like February: Volkswagen stays on top, Skoda confirms second place and Toyota rounds out the podium, with the Czech brand once again the only one in the Top 3 to grow (+14%).

Here too, outside the Top 10, BYD again recorded the biggest increase (+162,7%), while Jaguar ends the year with a 99,5% drop.