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The losses in the car trade are even more serious as it has suffered an 80% decline in the annual turnover in recent years. The strongest years for car traders were 2000 and 2004. Then, annual sales exceeded 420 thousand. In 2012, they will not exceed 60 thousand as shown by the data presented by Aris Aravanitis, who is the manager of Toyota Hellas. 30% of the dealerships were closed in the last five years and over 35% of the employees in the sector have lost their jobs.

The decline in the automotive industry in Greece has a direct negative impact on the banking sector and the insurance business, said Aravanitis. He stressed that the crisis has changed consumer behaviour and the customer profile. Now, people are much more aware of the characteristics of the vehicles they buy. The customers know what they are looking for. The main priorities when buying a car are associated both with the market price of the car and the maintenance costs in the future. On the other hand, users no longer remain faithful to the same brand. Customer loyalty, on which importing companies could rely in the past, no longer exists and the fight for the few sales becomes much more violent.