Sales of SUVs saw the steadiest rises in the past few years because of the launch of models on the premium segment, as well as to the launch of more affordable models. This year, when the car market collapsed, SUVs fared best, with a "mere" 44% decline.

Currently the cheapest SUVs on the Romanian market are manufactured by Fiat and Suzuki in Hungary, with prices starting from 12,000 - 14,000 euros, VAT included, but, starting next year, producers will also have Dacia as a competitor, after it launches its first off-roader on the market, whose price will most likely start from around 12-14,000 euros.

The ranking of the cheapest SUVs, with prices starting from less than 20,000 euros, now includes Hyundai Tucson, Skoda Yeti, Volkswagen Tiguan, Nissan X-Trail and Ford Kuga, according to data from importers centralised by ZF.

"Sales of premium SUVs saw a steeper decline this year. Now, clients opt either for small, diesel engine-powered vehicles or for vehicles with low-consumption petrol engines, such as FSI in the case of Volkswagen," said Alin Tapalaga, manager of Porsche Inter Auto, the retail division of Porsche Romania. In the first ten months of the year SUV sales fell 44%, to 8,578 vehicles, the lowest decline rate on the Romanian market, without including MPVs (multi-purpose vehicles), which saw an almost seven-fold decline. This compares with a 54% decline for imported vehicles in the similar period.

The SUV market has become very crowded over the last few years, with the fight over market share among producers being tighter in this time of sales decline.

The biggest increases on the Romanian market over the last three years have been recorded by premium SUVs, such as Audi Q7, BMW X5, and Volkswagen Tuareg, while Hyundai Tucson and Santa Fe remained among the top-selling SUVs in the last three years. "In terms of volume, the