Dacia Sandero leads Portugal car sales in August as Mercedes-Benz models surge

Dacia Sandero leads Portugal's August market

The Dacia Sandero was Portugal's best-selling car in August, with 511 registrations. However, two Mercedes-Benz models were the most notable performers within the top 10.

The GLC posted growth of 113.6%, reaching 282 units, while CLA registrations surged by 155.8% to 220 units. Both models have recently received new generations or updates, helping to explain their sharp increases.

Their performance is even more significant in the year-to-date rankings, where they currently sit in 34th and 28th place respectively.

In a month when Portugal's passenger car market expanded by 8.4% to 14,086 units, the Sandero retained the lead after increasing its sales by 6.5%.

The Citroën C3 followed with 435 units, up a substantial 55.9% on August last year. Completing the podium was the Dacia Duster, whose registrations rose by 1.6%.

The Renault Clio took fourth place with 302 units and growth of 8.6%, helping the Renault Group to lead the market in August. The Toyota Yaris Cross rounded off the top five despite a 3% decline.

Mercedes-Benz and other strong performers

Beyond the two Mercedes-Benz models, several other cars recorded particularly sharp sales gains. Citroën C3 Aircross registrations climbed 83.8% to 204 units, while the Toyota Yaris rose 75.7% to 267 units.

The Peugeot 208 also delivered a positive result, with sales increasing by 23.5% to 289 units. That was not enough to secure a podium position, although it remains the second best-selling model in Portugal over the year to date.

Other highlights

The ranking of Portugal's 50 best-selling models in August points to a clear trend: electric cars are gaining ground, while combustion-only models are losing market share. Electric vehicles accounted for 36.1% of the market last month, compared with 16.5% for petrol and diesel cars. A total of 5,079 electric cars were registered in August, 65.2% more than in the same month last year.

One of the clearest examples of this shift can be found within BMW's own range. The BMW iX1 recorded growth of 192.4%, with 193 units registered, whereas sales of the combustion-powered BMW X1 fell by 44% to just 163 units.

Hybrid cars (full and mild-hybrid) represented 20.2% of the market, while plug-in hybrids accounted for 17.5%. However, registrations of hybrid cars remained broadly stable (0.4%), while plug-in hybrid sales declined by 9.1%.

Outside the top 10, the CUPRA Formentor (+153.1%), Dacia Bigster (+154.2%) and SEAT Arona (+165%) also stood out. The BYD Atto 2 DM-i entered the market at the beginning of this year, but has featured regularly among the best-selling models in recent months, including August.

Biggest declines and Tesla Model Y growth

Among the steepest falls, the Tesla Model 3 dropped by 99.4%, with just one unit sold. It was followed by the MG ZS (-70.4%) and Volkswagen T-Cross (-60.2%). Nevertheless, the Tesla Model Y grew by 96%, with 147 units registered.