No One Is Buying New Cars in Russia

Things are so bad, the Russian auto industry might need government support to survive.

By: Anthony Alaniz

Apr 18, 2025 at 11:30am ET

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New car sales in Russia are falling off a cliff. Data from the Association of European Businesses (AEB) shows March 2025 sales down a whopping 45 percent compared to the same month last year, with automakers selling just 83,000 vehicles last month in the country. Sales for the quarter are down 26 percent, to 254,000 units.

According to the AEB, a lobbying group of foreign investors in Russia, this is the country’s third-worst sales contraction in the past 10 years. Sales fell 59 percent in March 2022, a month after Russia invaded Ukraine, and 36 percent in early 2015 during the country's financial crisis.

Things sound dire this time, though. Alexey Kalitsev, the association’s chairman of the Automobile Manufacturers Committee, said “the continuation of the current trend may lead to a crisis in the industry, which will require urgent support from the state.”

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According to Kalitsev, buyers believed “some previously departed companies would return to the Russian market,” which has not happened, only “increasing the volume of deferred demand, which in the future may lead to growth.” The industry can’t survive if this trend continues, though.

Many global automakers exited the Russian market or ceased operations there after the country invaded Ukraine. Ford, BMW, Lamborghini, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, and others took a range of actions to distance themselves from the country, including paying workers to quit, selling assets, and ending production. Sanctions against Russia also hurt its domestic car industry, putting further financial strain on these companies.