Boosted by high order volumes for the Mokka, ADAM and new Insignia, the brand achieved 6.7% of the overall vehicle market in Europe in March, its highest market share since June 2011.

According to preliminary figures, new vehicle registrations climbed to around 133,700 units, an increase of over 9.3% compared to March last year. In the first three months of this year, Opel/Vauxhall new vehicle registrations jumped by more than 12,700 units to around 271,000 cars.

‘Many European markets are finally growing again. It is a positive sign that Opel/Vauxhall is gaining market shares in this situation. The sustainability of our growth is also reflected in our current order books: already at the end of March, we had received around 20,000 more orders than in the first quarter of 2013,’ said sales chief Peter Christian Küspert. ‘The current bestseller among the new models is the Mokka with around 215,000 orders. We are also delighted with the popularity of our lifestyle mini ADAM with 80,000 orders, and we have already received over 85,000 orders for our flagship the new Insignia.’

Success was seen across Europe. In March and the entire first quarter, Opel/Vauxhall gained market share in 10 European countries. Opel was especially successful in its home market in Germany. With 7.1% market share of the overall vehicle market in March, the brand grew by 0.3%age points compared to March last year. Over the first quarter, market share was 6.7%, 0.2%age points higher than the year-ago quarter. Both the Mokka and Meriva were number two in their segments in the first quarter of 2014. In the largest market in the UK, our sister brand Vauxhall grew sales by 17% in March compared to one year ago. Insignia and Zafira were number one in their segments, while Corsa and Mokka took the number two spot.

Interest in new Opel models is currently particularly high in Poland, where registrations jumped by 57% in March. Opel also reinforced its number one position in the passenger car market in Hungary last month, in the Netherlands the brand conquered the number one position for the first time since March 2012.