South Africa's vehicle market is buckling under the pressure of an economic slowdown that shows no signs of letting up.
According to figures released by the Department of Trade and Industry, via Lightstone Auto , South African new vehicle sales amounted to just 49 465 units during May 2014, a fall of 9.2 percent compared to may last year. Passenger cars were the worst hit, with a year-on-year decline of 11.3 percent while light commercial vehicle sales dropped by 5.1 percent.
According to Naamsa, prospects are not looking very rosy for the rest of this year thanks to lower growth, new vehicle price increases due to a weak rand and the increasing possibility of interest rate hikes.
Those high prices are sure to be having an effect. According to TransUnion Auto, new vehicle prices increased 6.58% in the first quarter of 2014 alone, while used vehicle prices increased by just 0.83%.
Naamsa predicts that the new vehicle market will see an overall decline of between 3.5 and 5.0 percent this year.
Back to May's sales race, Toyota took the expected lead, with 9378 units sold, while Volkswagen took second spot with 8358 sales. AMH/AAD (Kia/Hyundai) took third place (5441), ahead of Ford SA (5217) and GMSA (5008).
50 TOP SELLERS: MAY 2014
1. Toyota Hilux - 2637
2. VW Polo Vivo - 2476
3. VW Polo - 2326
4. Ford Ranger - 2018
5. Toyota Corolla/Auris/Quest - 1922
6. Nissan NP200 - 1604
7. Isuzu KB - 1482
8. Chevrolet Utility - 1353
9. Toyota Quantum - 1068
10. Toyota Etios - 1033
11. Ford Figo - 867
12. Mercedes C-Class - 772
13. BMW 3 Series - 760
14. Toyota Fortuner - 698
15. Nissan NP300 - 650
16. VW Golf - 627
17. Ford Fiesta - 585
18. Ford Ecosport - 561
19. Chevrolet Spark - 558
20. Audi A4 - 520
21. Renault Clio - 501
22. Toyota RAV4 - 493
23. Nissan Qashqai - 454
24. Ford kuga - 407
25. Audi A3 - 382
26. Renault Duster - 377
27. Mercedes A-Class - 371
28. Renault Sandero (new) - 362
29. Toyota Avanza - 359
30. VW Tiguan - 356
31. BMW 1 Series - 335
32. Chevrolet Aveo - 288
33. Nissan Juke - 275
34. VW Amarok - 248
35. Land Cruiser PU - 245
36. Toyota Yaris - 235
37. Nissan Micra - 233
38. Suzuki Swift - 215
39. Renault Sandero (old) - 211
40. VW Jetta - 202
41. Ford Focus - 199
42. Mercedes E-Class - 197
43. Mazda BT-50 - 192
43. Mercedes B-Class - 192
45. Honda Brio - 187
46. BMW X5 - 182
47. Jeep Grand Cherokee - 177
48. Chevrolet Cruze - 173
49. Chevrolet Captiva - 172
49. Opel Astra - 172
*Hyundai/Kia supply aggregate monthly figures only and thus could not be included in this list.