Both 2021 and 2022 ended up being extremely strong years, considering car sales in Norway. But part of the explanation for the rise in 2022 was the government’s tax changes in the autumn. It made it extra profitable to secure a new car before the New Year.
From 1 January, a new weight tax was introduced on all cars. In addition, VAT has been introduced on electric cars that cost more than NOK 500,000.
The year-end rush resulted in a record number of registrations in December.
But now the industry has woken up to a completely new everyday life.
87 percent decrease
The statistics from the first three weeks of 2023 show an almost complete stop to new registrations, writes the industry website bilnytt.no.
Specifically, the figure is 670 new cars. In the same period last year, the number was 5,244. Although January last year was nothing to brag about either, there is therefore talk of a decline of as much as 87 per cent in 2023.
– That there would not be many new cars registered in the first weeks of 2023 was not unexpected. After all, December was a record month by a good margin – and almost 40,000 registered cars. But the fact that it is so quiet in the first three weeks is still startling, says editor and managing director of Bilnytt, Atle Falch Tuverud.
– We see that some car ships are coming in now, so the pace of registration will probably pick up, but the first quarter is expected to be scrapped in both new contracts and deliveries.
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OFFER: How car sales will be in 2023 is still uncertain. This is clearly emphasized with the registration statistics for the first three weeks of the year.
A lot of uncertainty
The new car forecasts from Norwegian car importers for 2023 range mainly from 130,000 to 155,000 registrations. In other words, well below the 174,000 we had last year.
EXCITED: Editor in Bilnytt – Atle Falch Tuverud – is excited about what the car year 2023 will be like.
– More cars will probably be delivered than will be sold, as many have been on waiting lists for a long time. Several importers still have large order reserves due out. The car industry is happy about that now, as things have become a little quieter in the shops, continues Tuverud.
He believes there will be lower order reserves and shorter waiting times towards the end of the year, if nothing new happens in the supply chains again.
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Mazda at its best
94 of the 670 cars that were registered in the first three weeks of January are Mazda MX-30s.
The Japanese brand only has this one electric car, and is usually way down the charts.
The MX-30s that are now registered are probably models that did not manage to be ready before the new year. In other words, no new sales made this year.
Tesla not in the Top 10
Tesla, which recently reduced the price of both Model 3 and Model Y, is not on the Top 10 list of either brand or model. For now.
But it’s not about a lack of sales. Tesla usually delivers cars every quarter – so that the majority of registrations tend to come in pools.
Everything indicates that they have received a good response to the price adjustment on Model 3 and Model Y.
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Top 10: Models as of 22.1.2023
- Mazda MX-30 94
- Volkswagen ID.4 72
- Toyota Yaris Cross 58
- Volvo XC40 31
- Skoda Enyaq 28
- Volkswagen ID.3 28
- Volkswagen Caravell 23
- Volvo C40 21
- Volvo XC60 19
Top 10: Brands as of 22.1. 2023
- Volkswagen 153
- Toyota 128
- Mazda 97
- Volvo 87
- Skoda 37
- Audi 35
- Nissan 19
- Peugeot 18
- Mercedes-Benz 12
- MG 11
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