Today’s Zaman - Automotive Distributor's Association (ODD) President Mustafa Bayraktar said on Monday that automobile sales increased by 13.61 percent in 2011, reaching the highest number of sales in the industry's history, totaling 864,439.
According to Bayraktar, 270,920 of the cars sold were light commercial vehicles (LCV). With the addition of 45,000 heavy duty vehicles, total annual vehicle sales totaled almost 910,000 units.

“In 2011, 84 percent of sales were cars in the A, B and C categories, all of which are subject to low tax rates,” Bayraktar said. He also noted that sales grew by 76.6 percent in the first quarter and 36.9 percent in second quarter. Following forecasts of a slowdown during the third quarter, the final three months of the year saw growth of 11.7 percent.

Cars with an engine size of 1600cc and under led the way with 529,135 units sold throughout the year, representing a share of 89 percent of total sales. Vehicles with an engine size of between 1600 and 2000cc were second most popular, with a 9 percent share.