The auto expert named the brands that will have the hardest time returning to Russia.

Among the car brands that have left the Russian market since 2022, Skoda and Volkswagen will be the hardest to return to the country. This opinion was expressed by Nikolai Ivanov, director of the New Cars department at Rolf, as quoted by Rossiyskaya Gazeta on June 6.

It will be extremely difficult for the massive car brands that dominated the Russian car market in recent years to regain their positions and show the results they are used to, Ivanov believes.

The expert cited the appearance of Chinese manufacturers in Russia as the main reason for this. Not only have they greatly improved the quality of their products, but they also offer competitive prices. According to his observations, customers are ready for an alternative in the form of Chinese brands.

"The most noticeable indicator of such a reversal is the sales statistics in the parallel import segment. The volumes of Skoda and Volkswagen have dropped significantly there. Now there are models on the Russian market, for example, Haval H7, Chery Tiggo 8 Pro Max, Chery Tiggo 9, Exeed RX — and they began to push competitors out of the market, including Skoda Kodiaq and Volkswagen Tiguan," Ivanov said.

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Earlier in the day, it was reported that in May, Chinese brands accounted for more than half of the Russian new passenger car market, accounting for 54%.

On June 4, it became known that Lada Granta led the Russian car market among all models in May. In the last month of spring, 12 thousand Granta machines were sold, including those produced on its basis. This is 35.1% less than a year ago.