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TheC-segment is the 3rd category of theEuropean segments for passenger cars and is described as "medium cars".[1][2] It is equivalent to theEuro NCAP "small family car" size class,[3] and thecompact car category in the United States.[4]
In 2024, the C-segment had a Europeanmarket share of 13.9%.[5]
The European segments are not based on size or weight criteria.[1][6] In practice, C-segment cars have been described as having a length of approximately 4.5 m (14.8 ft).[7][8] As of 2021 C-segment category sizes span from approximately 4.2 to 4.6 m (13.8 to 15.1 ft).
Examples include Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Corolla, Mercedes-Benz A-Class, Ford Focus, SEAT León, BMW 1 Series, Audi A3, Citroën C4 and Honda Civic.[9]
The most common body styles for C-segment cars in Europe arehatchbacks, followed bysedans andwagons/estates.
In 2020 the highest selling C-segment cars in Europe were the Volkswagen Golf, Škoda Octavia, Toyota Corolla, Mercedes A-Class, Ford Focus, SEAT León, BMW 1-Series, Audi A3, Citroen C4, Peugeot 308, Renault Mégane, Kia Ceed, Opel Astra, Mercedes-Benz CLA and Volkswagen ID.3.[10]
200,000 – 300,000 sales(Best-Selling)
100,000 – 200,000 sales
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50,000 – 100,000 sales
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| 2021 rank | Brand | Model | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | % change (2020–2021) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Volkswagen | Golf | 462,527 | 523,729 | 534,535 | 491,681 | 482,177 | 445,303 | 410,779 | 285,013 | 214,069 |  -25% |
| 2 | Škoda | Octavia | 165,027 | 205,071 | 215,797 | 226,737 | 227,313 | 216,676 | 218,439 | 180,902 | 151,442 | -16% |
| 3 | Toyota | Corolla | 4,714 | 12,432 | 12,713 | 14,030 | 14,382 | 15,041 | 133,597 | 137,209 | 142,720 |  +4% |
| 4 | Mercedes | A-Class | 131,258 | 121,231 | 119,475 | 141,800 | 143,550 | 153,882 | 198,926 | 158,955 | 118,439 | -25% |
| 5 | Ford | Focus | 225,102 | 222,297 | 232,160 | 212,083 | 212,353 | 199,197 | 224,401 | 173,853 | 101,066 | -42% |
| 6 | SEAT | León | 85,954 | 136,896 | 141,777 | 143,938 | 144,951 | 139,470 | 136,622 | 111,045 | 96,748 | -13% |
| 7 | BMW | 1 Series | 152,808 | 131,847 | 130,494 | 132,287 | 137,959 | 127,681 | 112,068 | 107,870 | 96,410 | -11% |
| 8 | Audi | A3 | 167,804 | 199,815 | 198,663 | 189,956 | 163,928 | 142,414 | 124,422 | 97,492 | 95,788 | -2% |
| 9 | Kia | Ceed | 86,743 | 75,692 | 73,412 | 76,530 | 68,443 | 71,848 | 100,676 | 72,017 | 80,057 | +11% |
| 10 | Volkswagen | ID.3 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 54,495 | 72,723 | +32% |
| 11 | Renault | Mégane | 149,435 | 135,206 | 123,114 | 148,213 | 167,836 | 138,077 | 129,222 | 74,536 | 68,692 | -8% |
| 12 | Citroën | C4 | 79,476 | 61,533 | 50,202 | 46,939 | 32,673 | 14,926 | 129 | 3,441 | 64,982 | +1.788% |
| 13 | Opel/Vauxhall | Astra | 198,449 | 179,547 | 192,973 | 250,410 | 216,515 | 158,674 | 136,638 | 70,550 | 58,063 | -18% |
| 14 | Mercedes-Benz | CLA | 27,598 | 38,374 | 62,100 | 65,810 | 64,086 | 58,522 | 61,958 | 67,319 | 55,956 | -17% |
| 15 | Peugeot | 308 | 99,697 | 161,515 | 213,764 | 194,650 | 157,422 | 153,651 | 141,060 | 90,324 | 53,356 | 40% |
| Mainstream | 2,068,504 | 2,274,368 | 2,317,728 | 2,380,154 | 2,335,894 | 2,132,583 | – | – | – | |||
| Premium | 721,936 | 746,176 | 865,724 | 938,349 | 873,774 | 798,398 | – | – | – | |||
| Segment total | 2,650,578 | 2,026,503 | 1,774,634 | -12% | ||||||||
| Source | [11][12] | [13][14] | [15][16] | [17][18] | [19][20] | [21][22] | [23] | [24] | [25] |
Note: Sales ofpremium C-segment vehicles were recorded separately until 2019, where they were consolidated into total segment sales along withD-segmentpremium cars. Premium brands and models are marked initalic. Electric car sales were first included in the segment total in 2020.
2019 – The compact car segment in Europe sees 5% fewer deliveries in 2019, as Europe’s #2 segment is down to 2.65 million sales, or 16.9% of the total European car market, down from 18% in 2018.[26]
2020 – Sales of compact cars in Europe are down 24% to 2.03 million in 2020, perfectly in line with the overall market. And while Europeans bought more small crossovers than compact cars in the first three quarters of the year, in the full-year score the pecking order is returned to “normal”, with an advantage of 17,000 sales for the compact class. This result is mostly due to a wave of VW ID.3 (self)registrations, especially in December. We expect small crossovers to become Europe’s #2 segment in 2021 by a large margin.[27]
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According to 2011 sales,[28] compact cars are currently the second segment in Europe after thesubcompact one (which in Europe corresponds toA-segment +B-segment), with approximately 3 million units sold.
Because of theVolkswagen Golf's definition and long standing dominance of this class it is often referred to as the "Golf segment" in much of Europe.[29][30][31]
Mainstream compact sedans began falling in popularity since 1990s, when Peugeot stopped production of306 in 4-door saloon form, and also sharply declining since 2010s, as well as the reduced sales of 4-doorFord Focus.[citation needed]
During the late 1990s,compact MPVs increased in popularity as a competitor to the compact car, with models such as theRenault Scenic and theCitroën C4 Picasso becoming popular in Europe.[32] By the early 2010s, demand for compact MPVs was declining, due to the rise of thecompact SUV.[33]
After the Second World War, European manufacturers usually featured two vehicle types: smalleconomy cars that were usually saloons and largesaloons. By the 1960s, the post war economic boom had produced customers who wanted something of intermediate size. These were usually saloons during the 1950s and 1960s.
The world's firsthatchback,[34][31] the 1958FR layoutAustin A40 Farina Countryman model that was a co-development ofBMC and the Italian design housePininfarina at a time when this was unusual. It had a lift up rear window and drop down boot lid. It was also sold as a two-door saloon. It was built in Italy byInnocenti as well as in the UK. For 1965 Innocenti designed a new single-piece rear door for their Combinata version of the Countryman. This top-hinged door used struts to hold it up over a wide cargo opening and was a true hatchback – a model never developed in the home (United Kingdom) market. The Countryman name has 'estate' type associations, and BMC successor companyRover used the name onestate cars / Station Wagons so it is largely forgotten. This hatchback layout was further pioneered along with the European switch to front wheel driveFF layout with the smaller 1964 (Fiat)Autobianchi Primula.
The modern C-segment market in Europe can be traced back to the 1968 launch of theRenault 6, the first successful hatchback of this size. Thehatchback bodystyle was first introduced byRenault with the 1964Renault 16, which was elected the 1965Car of the year in Europe. A review in the EnglishMotoring Illustrated in May 1965 stated: "The Renault Sixteen can thus be described as a large family car but one that is neither a four door saloon and nor is it quite an estate. But, importantly, it is a little different."[35] Even the later similar-sized cars like theFord Escort,Vauxhall Viva,Austin Allegro andHillman Avenger were still only available as saloons or estates, although some cars of this size, like theBMC/BL 1100 and 1300 saloons andItaly'sFiat 128 featured front-wheel drive from their launch during the 1960s.
The C-segment was revolutionized in 1974 with the launch of theVolkswagen Golf, a front-wheel drive hatchback, which was hugely successful all over Europe. Within a decade, most cars of this size in Europe were front-wheel drive hatchbacks. These included theFiat Ritmo (Strada in the UK),Ford Escort (from the MK3 model launched in 1980),Opel Kadett (Vauxhall Astra in the UK),Renault 11, and theTalbot Horizon (originally aChrysler/Simca untilPeugeot took overChrysler'sEuropean division in 1979). Most manufacturers still offered a traditional saloon of this size though, with Volkswagen using the Golf as the base for itsJetta saloon, and Ford launching the Escort-basedOrion in 1983. Also in the 1980s saloons became popular again in certain Western European markets, often with a different model name than the hatchback, for example theRenault 9 (Renault 11-based),Fiat Regata (Ritmo-based) andSEAT Málaga.
Some carmakers later created theliftback bodystyle like thePeugeot 309, which replaced the Talbot Horizon in this sector at the end of 1985.
Since the mid-1990s, premium brands usually associated with larger and more expensive cars have entered the C-segment with more affordable hatchbacks and saloons. The first such example was theAudi A3 in 1996. Subsequent cars of this type include theBMW 1 Series andMercedes-Benz A-Class.
In the 1st decade of 21st century,coupé convertibles (cabriolets) with components from these vehicles were being also built. Examples of this are thePeugeot 307 CC and later308 CC in the first generation, third-generationOpel Astra TwinTop, second generationFord Focus Coupe-Convertible, andVolkswagen Eos.
Early successful compact family cars by French manufacturers areCitroën GSA hatch version of the 1970 GS,Peugeot 304 andRenault 14. During 1980s,Citroën replaced the GSA with the 1983BX that was between the sizes of the small family car and large family car, in an attempt to cover both markets with single model. TheCitroën ZX was the model which celebrated the entry ofPSA Group (now Stellantis) in China during early 1990s.
Cars of the Soviet/Russian brandLada:VAZ-2101,VAZ-2103,VAZ-2106,Lada Riva (based on theFiat 124 andFiat 125) andLada Samara (since 1984) were very popular inCentral andEastern Europe in the 1970s and 1980s. The modern-dayLada's compact cars areLada Priora andLada Vesta. There was also the lineup of theAZLK-factory,Moskvitch (from 1947 to 2003):400,402,408,412,Izh 2125 (the first Soviethatchback),2140 andAleko.
At the start of the 1970s, the two most popular sectors of the UK market[citation needed] were small family cars andlarge family cars. From its launch in 1962, the small familyBMC 1100/1300 was often Britain's best selling car;[36][37] other locally produced compact cars included theFord Escort,Vauxhall Viva andHillman Avenger. Imported small family cars that were popular in the UK included theCitroën GS andDatsun Sunny 120Y.
British Leyland replaced the BMC 1100/1300 with a variety of models: the 1969Austin Maxi, the 1971Morris Marina, and the 1973Austin Allegro.
A second-generation Ford Escort (jointly designed in Britain and Germany) was released in 1974. The same year, the GermanVolkswagen Golf front-wheel-drive hatchback was released, becoming one of the first significantly imported small family cars in the UK market. The sporty "GTI" version of the Golf sparked a huge demand for "hot hatches" in the UK and many other countries.
The third-generation Vauxhall Viva was produced until late 1979, when it was replaced by theVauxhall Astra (a rebadgedOpel Kadett D which was initially produced in West Germany and Belgium).
The Astra was part of a late-1970s transition in small family cars from being predominantlyrear-wheel-drivesaloons, to becomingfront-wheel-drivehatchbacks (by then increasingly popular in mainland Europe). The Austin Allegro – introduced five years earlier – was front-wheel-drive, but was built in only saloon andestate body styles. Only the relatedAustin Maxi was a hatchback.
The Hillman Avenger (marketed as a Chrysler Avenger 1976–1979 and as a Talbot Avenger 1979–1981) continued to sell well,[citation needed] in spite of the 1978 launch of theTalbot Horizon front-wheel-drive hatchback.
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TheFord Escort Mk3 went on sale in the autumn of 1980, replacing the rear-wheel-drive saloon format of the Mk2 with a hatchback and front-wheel drive. (A saloon version called theFord Orion was added in 1983.) Only in 1983 was the Austin Allegro replaced by theAustin Maestro hatchback. In 1984, theVauxhall Astra Mk2 hatchback/estate/cabriolet was released, alongside a saloon version called theVauxhall Belmont.
The first significant Japanese-designed compact car in the UK was the 1981Triumph Acclaim, a licensed version of the four-doorHonda Ballade with a Honda-designed engine. The Acclaim was replaced in 1984 by theRover 200. In late 1985 thePeugeot 309 became the first Peugeot to be built in the UK at theRyton plant.
VW Group introduced C-segment cars sharing various generations of itsVolkswagen Group Aplatform under the Volkswagen, SEAT, Audi and Škoda brands.
Ford began the 1990s by replacing its 10-year-old Escort (and the Orion saloon version) with theFord Escort MkV. In 1998, the European version of the Escort was replaced by the globalFord Focus MkI model.
General Motors released theVauxhall Astra Mk3 update in 1991 and the all-newAstra Mk4 in 1998.
Rover Group introduced theRover 200 Mk2 in 1989. TheRover 200 Mk3 was introduced in 1995, replacing the Honda Concerto-based Mk2 with a UK-designed car.
exact market definition was left open .. boundaries between segments are blurred by factors other than the size or length of cars
The [C] segment is around 4.5 metres long.
4) Compact— vehicles between 165 and 179.99 inches in length or equivalent to Europe's C-segment for cars.