The growth rate of the period 1989-1992 is difficult to be achieved in the coming years, given the fall in real income and the increased cost of car manufacturing. These volatile changes are typical in a market such as the Greek one. It has a low per head vehicle ownership and more than half of all vehicles sold is in the Athens area. Although Greece is a member of EU it is still considered as part of the Middle East area by many multinational companies and consequently has not been integrated into the European distribution systems. The new car market profile comprises of mini, small and lower - medium segment vehicles.
Larger cars are very much underrepresented and so are sports cars and MPVs.
Dual purpose vehicles, however, are popular, particularly the cheapest ones. In the long run demand is not expected to return to its previous growth. Although car penetration is comparatively low, tight monetary and fiscal policies are expected to cause fluctuations in private consumption. Car ownership taxes are also expected to remain high. Even though this is one of the lowest proportions for any European country, it has only built up to this level in the last six years.