Portugal car market: February 2026 registrations rise, Peugeot leads and Tesla surges

With the second month of the year now complete, Portugal’s car market kept the upward momentum seen in January. According to figures released by ACAP - Associação Automóvel de Portugal, the passenger car segment rose by 5.5% in February, reaching a total of 20,541 newly registered units.

Looking at the overall market - combining light and heavy vehicles - growth was much more modest at 1.8% compared with 2025, totalling 23,408 units. This slower pace is explained mainly by the sharp drop in light commercial vehicles, where registrations fell by 25.3%. Heavy goods vehicles also ended the month in negative territory, although the decline was smaller, at 1.2%.

Across the year to date, the picture was more pronounced: in the first two months of 2026, the market expanded by 8.6%, to 43,450 units.

The 10 best-selling brands

In February, as expected, Peugeot remained in first place. The French brand - Portugal’s leader over the past five years - registered 2,425 units, despite a slight 1.2% fall compared with the same month in 2025.

Close behind was Mercedes-Benz (1,451 units), virtually flat (+0.1%), while BMW (1,295 units) continued its growth trend (+3.5%).

However, the biggest talking points of the month were Opel and Tesla. With 1,282 units, the German brand surged by 70.3%, delivering one of the largest increases within the Top 10 and finishing just outside the podium places. Tesla climbed even more sharply: +112.1%, which equated to 1,160 registered units and seventh position among February’s 10 best-selling brands, ahead of Volkswagen, Renault and Toyota.

Nissan (+22.6%), Citroën (+38.1%) and Volkswagen (+12.8%) all ended the second month of the year in positive territory, whereas Renault (-36.8%) and Toyota (-10.5%) recorded sizeable declines. The French brand posted the steepest drop among the 10 best-selling marques.

Outside the Top 10, the spotlight fell on Chinese brands. MG grew by 187.7%, XPeng by 98.3% and Dongfeng by 114.3%. Even so, it is worth noting that, aside from MG, these brands were starting from bases below 100 registrations in 2025.

BYD increased by 32.7% to 467 registrations, moving ahead of brands such as Audi, Skoda and FIAT, although its growth rate shows signs of easing. Among the larger rises, Polestar also stood out with a further 72%.

At the other end of the scale, Smart (-63.5%), Alfa Romeo (-60.7%), Dacia (-60.2%) and Mitsubishi (-42%) were among the biggest fallers of the month.

What about the year-to-date total?

Over January and February combined, Peugeot retains a comfortable lead, with 5,047 units and growth of 30.3%. Despite the small dip in February, a strong start to the year continues to underpin its advantage.

Mercedes-Benz and BMW are also tracking steadily, holding the same positions and posting year-to-date growth of more than 13%.

By contrast, Toyota and Renault - down 11.9% and 28.3% respectively - are having a more challenging start to 2026.

A final note goes to MG: on a year-to-date basis it entered the Top 10 with 1,538 units and growth of 189.1%, reinforcing its status as one of the fastest-expanding brands in Portugal’s car market.