French automotive brands have had mixed success in Australia, but there are signs that things could be turning around.
Citroen, Peugeot and Renault have all operated in Australia – on and off – for decades. All of them have had serious ups and downs and all of them have been relaunched at least once.
While Renault, and to some extent Peugeot, have had some sales success in Australia, Citroen barely registers when it comes to sales figures.
Considering how long they have been operating – 122 years for Renault, 211 years for Peugeot and 102 years for Citroen – it’s odd that their heritage hasn’t helped build a bigger buyer base in Australia.
But is all that about to change?
Last month, each brand grew their sales compared with the January 2021 results by a significant margin, potentially signalling a turnaround of their fortunes Down Under.
Is 2022 going to be the year that French brands finally go mainstream in Australia? Should Volkswagen and Skoda be worried about the French contenders snatching their semi-premium European crown? We take a look at what’s happening with each brand.
Renault
Renault came very close to being a real contender in Australia in the early-to-mid 2010s, with the brand recording its highest sales – 11,525 – in 2015.
Renault’s strong line-up of commercial vehicles, including the Kangoo, Trafic and Master vans, made up roughly a third of Renault’s sales that year.
It’s been a slow decline since, with the brand recording 7099 sales in 2021, a 2.8 per cent increase on its 2020 result.
A few things have changed between 2015 and 2021. Six years ago, the Clio light hatch was its top-selling model and the Megane small hatch and wagon were a core part of the range.
The Clio was dropped at the end of that model’s life cycle, with Renault deciding it wouldn’t make business sense to import the new-gen version, and the only Megane available in Australia now is the RS hot hatch range that starts north of $50,000.
Renault also had a false start with the Kadjar SUV. Sharing underpinnings with the Nissan Qashqai, the European-sourced Kadjar failed to fire and was discontinued here in early 2021, a year after it launched.
It has since been replaced by the coupe-style Arkana SUV that stands out much more than the run-of-the-mill Kadjar. The Arkana also made more financial sense for Renault as it’s sourced from the Renault-Samsung factory in South Korea.
Another change has been Renault’s local distribution. Last year, Renault Australia’s French parent company handed over distribution rights to private importer, Ateco Group, and the Sydney-based operation has bold plans to turn sales around.
Last year Renault’s commercial vehicle sales grew to 58 per cent of overall sales, with the Trafic mid-size van the top seller on 2093 units.
In January this year, the French brand recorded a 150 per cent increase over January 2021, with 645 sales.
Solid numbers for the recently launched new-generation Captur light SUV, the Arkaka and the ageing Koleos (which was up by nearly 2000%) helped the overall result.
This year the new-generation Kangoo will hit our shores and should give the Volkswagen Caddy a scare. An electric version will also be offered here. More new model activity is expected in 2023 when the all-electric Megane E-Tech crossover is expected to land.
It’s unclear if Renault Australia will bring in the soon-to-be-revealed Kadjar-replacing Austral SUV. This vehicle is rumoured to spawn a three-row version that could eventually replace the Koleos.
Either way, things are finally looking up for Renault.
Peugeot
Back in 2007, Peugeot sold more than 8000 vehicles in Australia. Since then, sales have fluctuated between 2000 and 5000 a year. But, finally, its fortunes appear to be improving.
Last year, the brand – distributed by Inchcape Australia along with sister brand Citroen – recorded 2805 sales, which is 31.8 per cent ahead of 2020.
Is if that wasn’t enough of a sign that things could be turning around, Peugeot registered 184 vehicles in January this year, representing a 72 per cent jump on the same month last year.
One reason for Peugeot’s recent growth is the addition of a commercial van range in 2019. Like Renault, Peugeot offers a small (Partner), medium (Expert) and large (Boxer) van alongside its two passenger cars, (308 and 508) and three SUVs (2008, 3008 and 5008).
The vans don’t sell the same numbers as the Renault range, but they do add some volume and last month their sales grew by between 12.5 and 162.5 per cent.
Last year the mid-size 3008 was its best seller by a mile (1172 sales), but in January, the 2008 took the lead with 74 registrations.
With the addition of the mid-range 2008 GT grade last year, and the anticipated arrival of an all-electric e-2008 this year, those sales will only continue to grow. Plug-in hybrid versions of the 508 and 3008 entering showrooms now should also help.
Coupled with the third-quarter launch of the striking new-generation 308 hatch and wagon, Peugeot is on a roll at the moment and could have a much better 2022.
Citroen
Citroen doesn’t have the brand awareness or model range of Peugeot or Renault, and as a result, volumes have always been considerably lower.
Back in 2005, it sold 2528 cars here. Last year, it was a dismal 175. It was so low that Citroen was outsold by Ferrari.
A lack of product that connects with buyers has hampered the brand in recent years, with some notable failures. The oddly-designed C4 Cactus failed to take off, and the C3 Aircross was dropped after lower-than-expected sales.
Inchcape also changed its light-commercial vehicle strategy in 2019, giving Peugeot the lead with the van range. That meant there was little point keeping the Citroen Berlingo – a twin of the Peugeot Partner – in the range. Unfortunately for Citroen, the Berlingo was its top seller.
However, in January this year, Citroen sales jumped by 70.6 per cent to 29 units. Granted, still a very low number, but a good result nonetheless.
The new C4 that launched late last year reborn as a crossover-hatch, is already attracting interest with 13 sales in January.
A refreshed version of the C5 Aircross is expected to come to Australia in the coming months and could give Citroen a boost in the medium-SUV space.
Then later in the year, the eye-catching C5 X medium-size crossover wagon will touch down to give the brand a premium boost.
Again, it’s unlikely Citroen is going to bother Toyota on the sales charts, but these additions will help to gradually build brand awareness, and sales, in Australia.
Keyword: Watch out Volkswagen and Skoda! Renault, Peugeot and Citroen are leading the French charge to become the alternative European brands of choice in Australia