Motorcycles take over passenger cars in sales
ISTANBUL
With demand rising fast, motorcycle sales in Türkiye surpassed that of passenger cars in the first 10 months of 2023.
From January to October, a total of 813,520 motorcycles were sold in the country, pointing to a staggering 148 percent year-on-year increase, while passenger car sales amounted to 749,501 units.
Last year, a record 415,544 motorcycles were sold, but representatives from the industry say sales are likely to be a little less than 1 million this year.
Higher prices combined with high costs of maintaining and running cars are luring people toward buying motorcycles, they said.
The share of 50 cc and electric motorcycles in total sales was more than 49 percent in January-October. In the first 10 months of 2023, more than 138,000 electric motorcycles were sold, accounting for 17 percent of all sales.
“The motorcycle market saw unprecedented growth, and it is continuing to expand,” said Bülent Kılıçer, senior assistant general manager at Honda Türkiye.
The previous record in the market was in 2006, with 373,000 sales, Kılıçer noted, adding that sales hovered a little above 150,000 before the pandemic.
“There are several reasons for the rising demand for motorcycles. But I believe the main cause is the price of passenger cars. Particularly, mid-income groups have been turning to motorcycles since they cannot afford to buy a car,” he explained.
Another reason is that the cost of maintaining and running a car has doubled or tripled, according to Kılıçler.
“Also, the public’s perception of motorcycles has changed in a positive way,” he said.
More motorcycles are available in the Turkish market now compared with previous years, but as is the case with passenger cars, their prices have been on the rise.
Prices of 50 cc vehicles range between 30,000 Turkish Liras and 70,000 liras. Depending on engine volume and class, scooter prices can even go up to 500,000 to 600,000 liras. Motorcycles in the Supersport or Touring class are now sold for 1.5 million liras.
