The Dacia Sandero was Europe's best-seller in July, giving the small hatchback the top spot in monthly sales for the fifth time in the first seven months of this year.
Sandero sales rose 35 percent last month to 22,858, according to Dataforce figures for the European Union, the EFTA countries and the U.K.
The Sandero topped its closest competitor, the second-place Volkswagen T-Roc, by more than 3,500 sales.
In July 2023, the T-Roc was No. 1 and the Sandero finished No. 2, with the VW model outselling the Dacia model 18,649 to 16,940.
The Toyota Yaris Cross finished the month in third place, up from No. 16 in July 2023, after increasing its sales 45 percent to 17,325.
Two SUVs, the Dacia Duster and the Kia Sportage, rounded out the top five, with the Duster outselling the Sportage by just 37 units. Sales of the Duster rose 25 percent while the Sportage grew 15 percent.
Eight of Europe's 10 top-selling cars increased sales in July compared with July 2023, with the exceptions being the Renault Clio (-8.1 percent) and the VW Golf (-14 percent).
The Tesla Model Y slipped out of the top 20, finishing at No. 24 as sales of the midsize SUV fell 16 percent to 9,820, according to Dataforce's figures.
The Tesla Model 3 finished in 70th place.
Despite the slowdown, Tesla was able to maintain a slim lead over BMW to the end of July as Europe's top-seller of full-electric vehicles.
7-month leaders
The Sandero leads the pack with seven-month sales of 168,133, followed by the Golf with 139,958 and the T-Roc, which passed the Clio, to rise into he top three, according to Dataforce's numbers.
The T-Roc leads the Clio 131,364 to 129,428 through July.
Rounding out the top five was the Peugeot 208 (119,738).
The Model Y, last year's seven-month sales leader, finished the period in ninth place overall, down from No. 8 at the end of the first half, according to Dataforce's figures.
VW brand had six models in the top 50 in July, led by the T-Roc. Toyota and Skoda each had five. Peugeot had four.
