Press release: 12.711-009/22

Vienna, 2022-01-17 – According to Statistics Austria, 239 803 new passenger cars were registered in 2021, 3.6% less compared to the previous year. This means that new passenger car registrations are 27.2% below the level of the pre-crisis year 2019 or at the lowest level in 37 years. The number of newly registered lorries increased by 56.2% to 62 561 in 2021. Tractors used for agriculture and forestry achieved an increase of 32.3% with 8 529 new registrations. Fewer new registrations were observed for two-wheelers, which declined by 2.9% to 44 747, after a significant increase in 2020. In 2021, a total of 371 252 motor vehicles were newly registered in 2021. This is 5.1% more than in the previous year and 14.9% less than in the pre-crisis year 2019.

Decline in petrol and diesel passenger cars; alternative drive systems only around 1 400 registrations behind petrol passenger cars

The renewed decline in new passenger car registrations in 2021 to 239 803 (2020: 248 740) is the lowest figure since 1984 (215 640). The number of newly registered passenger cars in 2021 is thus more than 70 000 vehicles below the 20-year average of 310 611 passenger cars.

New registrations of petrol-powered passenger cars (91 478; share: 38.1%) were down 15.1%, while those of diesel-powered passenger cars (58 263; share: 24.3%) were down 35.9%. The share of all alternatively powered passenger cars (90 062) increased by 17.5 percentage points to 37.6% within a year; the relative change from 2020 was 79.9% (2020: 50 060, share 20.1%; 2019: 26 346, share 8.0%; 2018: 16 807, share 4.9%). Among alternative drives, petrol-hybrid passenger cars (43 051) achieved a share of 18.0%, all-electric passenger cars (BEV; 33 366) 13.9% and diesel-hybrid passenger cars (13 545) 5.6%.

VW remains market leader ahead of Skoda and BMW

The top ten makes in 2021 accounted for 66.2% of all new passenger car registrations. VW remained the market leader with a share of 15.0%, followed by Skoda (share: 9.1%), BMW (share: 6.5%) and Seat (share: 6.3%). Compared to the previous year, Audi (+13.1%) and Fiat (+10.2%) recorded increases. Declines in new passenger car registrations were observed for Renault (-16.8%), Ford (-13.6%), Hyundai (-8.6%), Skoda (-7.6%), VW (-6.0%), Seat (-4.8%), Mercedes (-3.4%) and BMW (-1.2%).

Passenger car CO₂ emissions (WLTP) at 135 g/km on average

The preliminary average CO₂ emissions of all newly registered passenger cars in 2021 according to the WLTP test procedure ("Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicles Test Procedure") reached 135 g/km (excluding all-electric and hydrogen vehicles; including electric and hydrogen: 116 g/km). Passenger cars with petrol engines realised average CO₂ emissions of 139 g/km, those with diesel engines 150 g/km.

Positive developments related to commercial vehicle market; strong increase of light commercial vehicles due to NoVA introduction

A total of 62 561 new lorry registrations (+56.2%) were registered in 2021. This is 22 519 more lorry registrations than in 2020 and 14 519 more than in the pre-crisis year 2019. The majority of this growth was observed in light commercial vehicles. In 2021, 22 261 more lorries class N1 (58 806, +60.9%) were registered than in 2020, which can be related to the introduction of the NoVA obligation of light commercial vehicles on 1 June 2021 with a transition period until the beginning of November. New registrations of articulated lorries (2 925, +34.2%), tractors used for agriculture and forestry (8 529, +32.3%), lorries class N2 (394, +7.9%) and lorries class N3 (3 361, +7.3%) also developed positively. New registrations of campers continued their strong growth since the start of the pandemic (2020: 2 969, +74.2%) in 2021 with 4 782 registrations and an increase of 61.1%.

44 747 new registrations for two-wheelers

After a significant increase in new registrations of two-wheelers in 2020 (+13.4%), a decrease of 2.9% was observed in 2021. While the number of newly registered motorcycles (32 351) remained largely unchanged year-on-year (+0.5%), new registrations of scooters (12 396) declined by 10.8%.

Used passenger car registrations increased

Registrations of used passenger cars increased by 3.6% to 871 065. Registrations of used petrol passenger cars (including flex-fuel, 322 032, share: 37.0%, +0.8%) and diesel passenger cars (505 668, share: 58.1%, +1.0%) increased only slightly, while registrations of used passenger cars with alternative drive systems (43 365, share: 5.0%, +106.6%) doubled. In 2021, 12 305 used BEV passenger cars were registered (+107.3%; 1.4% share of total used passenger car registrations). In 2021, a total of 1 096 177 used motor vehicles were registered, up 4.5% from 2020.

Vehicle owners differ according to new and used passenger car registrations

66.5% of new passenger cars were registered to legal entities, companies and regional authorities in 2021, 33.5% to private vehicle owners. In the case of used passenger cars, only 10.0% were registered to legal entities, 90.0% to private owners. While 83.5% of all new BEV car registrations were accounted for by legal entities, companies and local authorities, and only 16.5% by private vehicle owners, 53.5% of used BEVs had private owners.

7.2 million motor vehicles registered in Austria, of which 5.1 million passenger cars

At the end of 2021, around 7.21 million motor vehicles were registered in Austria, according to preliminary data, 1.6% more than in the previous year. Passenger cars, the most important vehicle type in terms of share (71.2%), accounted for around 5.13 million vehicles, an increase of 0.8%. A total of 548 033 lorries (+7.0%), 478 695 tractors used for agriculture and forestry (+1.3%) and 19 827 articulated lorries (+2.2%) were registered. Campers achieved an increase of 11.5% with 36 482 vehicles. Among single-track vehicles, 592 688 motorcycles (+3.8%) and 276 440 scooters (+0.7%) were registered for traffic.

For more detailed results and further information concerning registration statistics of new vehicles, used vehicles and the stock of vehicles please refer to our website.

Information on methods, definitions: Motor vehicle statistics (registrations of new and used vehicles as well as the stock of vehicles) are secondary statistics, compiled on the basis of daily data files sent to Statistics Austria by Austria’s association of insurance companies (VVO). VVO, in turn, receives data by the insurances’ registrations offices, responsible for registrations, de-registrations and rectifications of motor vehicles and trailers. Within motor vehicle statistics, all motor vehicles, once nationally or internationally registered, are levied, irrespective of the registration’s duration. 
All new registrations, i.e. all brand-new registrations, are collected as part of the new vehicle registration statistics, regardless of the duration of the registration (including so-called "short-term registrations", e.g. one-day registrations). 
In the case of the used motor vehicle registration statistics, all used vehicle registrations, i.e. registrations of vehicles that have already been registered once nationally or abroad, are surveyed, regardless of the duration of the registration. 
Based on the motor vehicle stock of the previous year, all registered vehicles of the year - old and new - are added and the deregistrations are deducted, resulting in the annual vehicle stock. 
The determination of CO₂-emissions is based on globally harmonized measurements within the framework of the WLTP test procedure ("Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicles Test Procedure"), which will apply from September 1^st, 2018 - with a transitional period of up to 18 months; this measurement procedure replaces the "New European Driving Cycle" (NEDC).

For further inquiries please contact Directorate Spatial Statistics, Statistics Austria:  
Gerda FISCHER, Tel. +43 1 71128-7566 resp. gerda.fischer@statistik.gv.at, 
Stefan PREMM, Tel.: +43 1 71128-7598 resp. stefan.premm@statistik.gv.at and 
Thomas JANKA, Tel.: +43 1 71128-7575 resp. thomas.janka@statistik.gv.at

Media owner, producer and publisher: 
STATISTICS AUSTRIA, Federal Institution under Public Law 
1110 Vienna, Austria, Guglgasse 13, Tel.: +43 1 71128-7777 
presse@statistik.gv.at  
© STATISTICS AUSTRIA

©  STATISTICS AUSTRIA, Last Changed 17.01.2022

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