You can't forbid living beautifully: Russians are buying up premium European cars
Against the background of the general decline in the Russian car market, sales of premium and luxury cars of European brands are growing noticeably. Moreover, according to some models, the number of transactions exceeds the figures of the pre-sanctions period. Buyers are not deterred by the rising prices of such machines, nor by the lack of a company warranty on them. Izvestia investigated the reasons for Russians' love of "forbidden" cars.
The "Europeans" are in the black
In 11 months, total new car sales in Russia decreased by 17.8%. At the same time, the analysis of data provided to Izvestia by the analytical agency Autostat-Info indicates a significant increase in the interest of Russians in premium and luxury cars of European brands, which are supplied through alternative channels.
Thus, the number of transactions for the purchase of new BMW cars increased by 31.2% — from January to November inclusive, more than 14.2 thousand cars of this brand were sold, while 10.8 thousand were sold in the same period last year.. In addition, in 11 months, Russians have brought in almost 8 thousand. Mercedes-Benz is 25.9% more than last year's results.
Things are also going well for Audi (+25.4%) — its models sold 3.6 thousand units. Sales of Porsche sports models (+5.7%, 2,055 cars) and Lamborghini (+5.9%, 143 cars) also show stable results. Sales of Ferrari increased by 75.6% and Rolls—Royce by 62.7%. In absolute terms, the figures are, of course, small — 72 and 205 cars, respectively. However, sales of these brands have never been in the thousands.
It is noteworthy that there is a growing interest in European premium models against the background of a significant decrease in sales of cars of this class from China.: Sales of a number of car brands have collapsed several times in 11 months.
"Helik" is better than velika
Despite the fact that for almost four years now, bans imposed by unfriendly states on the official supply of any cars from the EU to our country have been in effect, for some models, sales results for 11 months of this year exceed those of the pre-sanctions period.
For example, from January to November, Russians purchased 1,726 Minivans, while 1,689 such SUVs were purchased in our country in the same 11 months of 2021. The difference in 37 cars is, of course, small, but four years ago these cars were officially supplied to our country, they had a factory warranty, and the Gelik cost 12-15 million rubles. Now they are imported through alternative channels, the company's warranty does not apply to them (sellers usually offer so-called dealer support), and their price is 27-35 million rubles.
Pre-sanctions figures also exceed sales of the Audi SQ8 (211 cars this year versus 152 in 2021), as well as "charged" versions of the Audi RSQ8 crossover (258 cars versus 53). The number of sports versions of the BMW M3 and M4 sold has also increased several times — each of these models sold 124 copies in 11 months of this year, while in 2021 only 11 pieces of treshek were sold, and 49 of fours.
Difficulties don't scare you
Due to the effects of the pandemic and the shortage of chips for the production of cars, 2021 was quite a difficult year for the entire global automotive market, including the Russian one, recalls Igor Morzharetto, partner at the Autostat analytical agency. However, the segment of premium and luxury models, despite various external factors, showed stability, he noted.
— There have always been and will always be people who want to buy Mercedes-Benz or are fans of, for example, Porsche. They have very high incomes, and therefore they are not interested in sanctions, prohibitions, difficulties with guarantees and other difficulties. If they want to buy a conditional Mercedes, they will buy it, regardless of these "little things". And there are more and more such people in our country," Igor Morzharetto told Izvestia.
In his opinion, the introduction of new rules for calculating the recycling fee contributed to the growth in sales of premium models this year. The appearance of an additional gradation of rates depending on engine power has increased the already high amount of this fee for such cars since December 1, the expert noted.
Despite the active expansion of Chinese automakers of premium models in all markets, including the Russian one, there are still cars in the global automotive industry that are a kind of landmark, says Maxim Kadakov, editor-in-chief of Za Rulem magazine.
— Such models are not just vehicles. This is an indicator of status and position in society. And a certain part of people simply cannot afford to drive another car. It doesn't matter to them whether the car costs 5, 10 or 30 million rubles — regardless of the price, they will buy it anyway. It is noteworthy that such purchases are often made spontaneously, often just before the New Year holidays — as a gift to friends and acquaintances from their own circle or "to a loved one," Maxim Kadakov believes.
Third-order issues
The issues of complex logistics of importing such cars, including their supply according to "gray" and "black" schemes, as well as the lack of a factory guarantee for their buyers, are not even on the second, but on the third, or even on the fifth plan, says Anton Shaparin, vice President of the National Automobile Union. A couple of years ago, the unclear situation with the repair and maintenance of premium and luxury "Europeans" was a certain deterrent, but now there are no problems with this, he notes.
— There are no problems with the repair or maintenance of Mercedes, BMW or any other premium European cars in Moscow or any other major city. All technical centers specializing in such machines are working, and the supply channels for spare parts and components are well-established. If some parts are not available, they will be delivered in a maximum of a week," said the vice president of NAS.
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