Kia motors zooms to a new record for car sales in Europe during the fist six months of the year.

• A record 229,585 Kia cars registered in Europe over first half of 2016
• 20 per cent of total EU sales came from the UK
• European-built models integral to Kia’s 14.8 per cent year-to-date sales growth
• Kia expands on best-ever Q1 with 118,837-unit second quarter

Kia Motors has posted its best ever quarterly and half-year European sales, according to the latest data from ACEA (European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association).

During the first half of 2016, Kia sold 229,585 units. This is the best-ever six-month period documented by the Korean brand in Europe and a 14.8 per cent uplift on the 200,038 vehicles it sold during the same period last year. Kia’s first-half sales performance equated to a 2.8 per cent European market share, compared to 2.7 per cent for the same period in 2015.

Kia sold 118,837 vehicles across Europe during the second quarter of the year, even more than the record first quarter of 2016 (110,748), marking a new quarterly sales record for the brand.

Michael Cole, Chief Operating Officer of Kia Motors Europe, commented: “2016 continues to be a year of sustained growth and success for Kia in Europe. Consecutive record quarters underline how Kia is increasingly seen by consumers and fleet buyers as a producer of high quality, high value vehicles. Our latest models are further broadening Kia’s appeal and we remain firmly on course to achieve an eighth consecutive year of sales growth in Europe.”

The UK was the best performing market in Europe, with Kia Motors (Uk) Ltd contributing 46,343 units across the first part of 2016, which is a massive 20.19 per cent of Kia Europe’s record-breaking sales result.

European-built models integral to Kia’s sales growth

Kia’s first half growth has been driven by strong sales of the Sportage compact SUV, cee’d model family (comprising five-door hatchback, Sportswagon and pro_cee’d), and Venga B-MPV, each built at the company’s European production facility in Žilina, Slovakia. Sales of Kia’s three European-built model lines have grown by 21 per cent year-on-year, with 134,681 sold in the first half of 2016.

In particular, the all-new Sportage maintains its place as Kia’s best-selling model in Europe. 56,126 units of the new model have been sold across Europe in just four months, since going on sale in Q1. This exceeds sales of its predecessor, 56,002 of which were sold during the first six months of 2015. Combined sales of the new Sportage and its predecessor this year stand at 77,970 units. Half-year sales of the recently upgraded cee’d model line-up have also grown year-on-year, from 40,090 in 2015 to 42,291 in 2016 (+six percent).

Year-to-date, Kia’s European production now accounts for 59 per cent of the brand’s sales in Europe, a number which has risen from 56 per cent during the same six-month period last year.

In the UK, 22,000 units of the all-new Sportage have been sold since 5 February 2016. This is a contribution of 39 per cent to the total European sales of the new 4x4 and the Optima is also performing 31 per cent up on its expected sales in the UK.

Sales growth across the line-up

Kia’s other B- and C-segment cars have also contributed to the brand’s expansion across Europe, with sales of the Rio supermini growing seven per cent year-on-year (to 35,370 units), and combined sales of the Kia Soul and Soul EV reaching 7,612 so far this year (up 8 per cent year-on-year). In particular, sales of the Kia Soul EV have grown by 69 per cent as increasing numbers of consumers across Europe switch on to the benefits of owning a vehicle with low running costs, a zero-emissions battery electric powertrain and Kia’s typical design flair.