Vehicle trade in Lower Austria:

When buying a new car, drivers are true “petrolheads”

More Lower Austrians are once again fulfilling their dream of owning a new car.

(Bild: Jauschowetz Christian/Christian Jauschowetz)

In Lower Austria, the major vehicle manufacturers are holding their own on the market. However, electric cars and diesel vehicles fell sharply last year. Which brands are ahead in the wide country.

The number of new car registrations in Lower Austria rose significantly in 2023. "However, we are still below the pre-corona level," explains Wolfgang Schirak, Chairman of the Vehicle Trade Group in the Lower Austrian Chamber of Commerce.

47,107 new vehicles were registered in the vast state in 2024, which corresponds to an increase of 8.1 percent - more precise absolute figures for the car brands of the previous year and the changes compared to 2023 below. VW remained the market leader ahead of Skoda, BMW and Audi. Peugeot made the biggest gains in the ranking of the 15 strongest car brands. Ford, Kia and Renault were among the biggest losers in the top rankings.

Vehicle trade in Lower Austria

• Strongest car brands:
  VW / 5964 / +15.96%
  Skoda / 5234 / +9.22%
  Seat / 2827 / +17.94%
  BMW / 2383 / +0.8%
  Dacia / 2287 / +2.97%
  Audi / 2140 / +3.03%
  Mazda / 1817 / +4.31%
  Toyota / 1713 / +9.18%
  Hyundai / 1536 / -6.4%
  Mercedes / 1536 / -1.22
  Kia / 1482 / -17.80%
  Renault /1422 /-13.56%
  Tesla / 1214 / -0.16%
  Ford / 1213 / -20.46%
  Peugeot / 1191 /+57.33%
• Highest percentage gains:
  SsangYong / 53/+2550%
  Smart / 91 / +911%
  BYD / 830 / + 319.19%
• Highest percentage losses:
  Aston Martin / 2 / -50%
  BMW Alpina / 1 / -50%
  Ineos / 1 / -50%

In general, new registrations of petrol-powered vehicles shot up by 14.6 percent in the vast country, while sales of diesel vehicles fell by 6.5 percent.

Electric cars "dropped off" in 2024
Three percent fewer electric cars were also sold. "However, this is the smallest decline among the federal states after Vienna. Austria-wide, the decline is 6.3 percent," analyzes Schirak, who nevertheless emphasizes that the future of the automotive industry in Europe is electric.

Particularly in a federal state with a large rural area, a range of modern, low-emission vehicles is still needed to meet the needs of customers.

Wolfgang Schirak, Obmann für den Fahrzeughandel in NÖ

Bild: David Schreiber

"It will take time for the necessary expansion of the infrastructure and for people to perceive electric mobility as the mobility of the future," he says. Especially in the rural areas of a large federal state, however, a range of modern, low-emission vehicles is still needed.