Business cars account for around half the new registrations in Austria, a market that saw ups and downs in 2015. It began slowly, according to data from Austria's car manufacturer association, Automotive.co.at. The first half of the year saw a dip of 3% compared with the first six months of 2014.

Mid-February numbers were particularly stark, down year-on-year by almost 8,000 units.

Yet by mid-March, sales recovered dramatically with figures that eventually leaped above the 2014 numbers. The healthier returns endured as the months passed and by September 2015, new car sales were 4.4% (1,103 units) up year-on-year.

Several of Austria’s largest leasing companies are now opting to outsource all non-financial aspects of the remarketing process. It’s a significant trend that Autorola has responded to with its offer of a full service solution. Clients no longer have to make separate arrangements for stages such as storage, logistics, appraisal, damage calculation, invoicing, etc. Instead, leasing companies are looking to companies like Autorola to support every function between a vehicle's return and its delivery to a buyer.

Austria was one of the few countries in the Eurozone to emerge relatively unscathed from the financial crisis. The car market was not adversely affected by the crash; in fact, record registration figures of just over 356,000 were achieved in 2011. By 2013, Austria had a higher real GDP level than before the crisis, a boast that only half of the EU member states can make.

Nevertheless, the left-leaning coalition government’s new tax package comes into force in 2016. The aim is to boost economic growth by reducing tax rates on low and middle incomes. Each taxpayer is expected to benefit to the tune of €1,000 per year. Boosts to consumer spending power will always be welcomed by car dealers.

This good news is tempered, however, by additional reforms such as an increase in sales tax rates from 10% to 13% and perks on company cars coming to an end.

As the Austrian consumers buyers tend to opt for higher than average trim, features such as leather upholstery and heated seats are common. Diesel engines dominate; however, petrol is making a comeback in Austria and may soon achieve parity in the car parc.

The Volkswagen Golf dominates new car sales, shifting twice the number of any other model. The rest of the top five places are fought out between VW Polo, VW Tiguan, Skoda Octavia and Skoda Fabia. With the VW Passat and Seat Ibiza also featuring in the top 10, only Opel Corsa and Hyundai's i20 and ix35 models disrupt the VW dominance.

As the various brands fight it out in the rankings, data is a weapon they all choose to deploy.

As with many other parts of Europe, Austria's dealers are struggling to find much profitability from selling new cars. As a short-term workaround, pre-registered vehicles are assisting some dealerships gain enough OEM bonus to break even or sneak into the black each month. Thankfully, however, more dealers are pursuing a smarter and more stable route to profitability by stepping up their used car sales activity.