Following the subtraction of government-supported scrappage programs earlier this year, passenger vehicle sales in the European Union have been on a seemingly unrelenting decline. Sales figures for passenger cars have been decreasing for seven months in a row; 1,027,036 units were registered in October 2010, marking a16.6% drop from the same time last year.

For the year spanning January to October, 11,279,542 new vehicles were registered in the EU, also marking a 5.5% decrease from the previous year.

According to ACEA figures, all major markets have been inundated by double-digit downturns, with the worst declines being suffered for the month of October this year.
- Spain (-37.6 percent)
- Italy (-28.8 percent)
- UK (-22.2 percent)
- Germany (-20.0 percent)
- France (-18.5 percent)

Despite the waning trends, Mitsubishi still managed to come out on top, albeit in small numbers. The automaker sold 2600 extra units, marking a 43.2% improvement for October. Moreover, luxury automaker BMW outdid itself, scoring a 5.1% increase compared to the same time last year.