Johannesburg - The recent positive momentum in South Africa’s new vehicle market continued in August, with vehicle sales growing 6.7 percent year-on-year to total 49 222 units, according to Naamsa.
Light commercial vehicles led the way, increasing 10.8 percent over August last year, while passenger car sales grew by 5.4 percent. Medium commercial vehicles bucked the trend however, falling 13.9 percent year-on-year, although the heavy truck and bus segment grew by 6.1 percent.
South Africa’s new vehicle exports registered a 12.9 percent decline over the same month last year, to total just 29 927 units.
Naamsa attributes the month’s solid domestic sales performance to lower vehicle price inflation along with attractive sales incentives and the recent 25 basis point interest rate reduction.
WesBank’s Rudolf Mahoney said that the growth in new car demand was inevitable, particularly with the supply of used vehicles dwindling, while aggressive new car deals also played a role:
“It is evident that manufacturers and dealers have come to realise that right now it’s a value-for-money play, and are offering highly attractive incentives to attract customers into the new car market,” Mahoney said.
On the sales charts, Toyota led by a healthy margin with overall sales of 10 751 versus Volkswagen’s 7299 and Ford’s 6482.
Toyota also surged ahead in the bakkie sales war, with 3392 Hilux sales versus Ford’s 2566 Ranger sales. Volkswagen continued to dominate the compact car segments with its Polo and Polo Vivo, while Ford ruled the compact SUV sector with its EcoSport and Toyota took top honours in the segments above that with its Rav4 and Fortuner.
Below you’ll find the top performers listed in each key segment, although due to the fact that Mercedes-Benz and BMW do not report individual sales figures we have omitted the premium segments where these brands feature prominently.
Budget Hatch/Sedan
Volkswagen Polo Vivo2340Toyota Etios1161Kia Picanto846Renault Kwid784Hyundai Grand i10591Ford Figo530Datsun Go451Suzuki Swift350Renault Sandero345Chevrolet Spark248Hyundai i10246Datsun Go+240
Compact Hatch/Sedan
Volkswagen Polo2096Ford Fiesta1071Kia Rio504Hyundai i20491Nissan Almera376Renault Clio268Audi A3223Mazda2203Hyundai Accent183Toyota Yaris134Audi A1133Opel Corsa121
Compact-Medium Hatch/Sedan
Toyota Corolla/Quest/Auris1343Ford Focus468Volkswagen Golf462Hyundai Elantra243Mazda3211Opel Astra51Renault Megane31Volvo V4028Honda Civic24Kia Cerato21
Compact Crossover/SUV
Ford EcoSport1071Hyundai Creta438Mazda CX-3332Renault Duster271Renault Captur146Suzuki Ignis144Toyota C-HR133Honda BR-V127Honda HR-V93Opel Mokka X71Suzuki Jimny71Mahindra KUV10063
Compact-Medium Crossover/SUV
Toyota Rav4651Hyundai Tucson425Mazda CX-5359Nissan X-Trail328Nissan Qashqai304Volkswagen Tiguan273Renault Kadjar186Audi Q5162Honda CR-V102Volvo XC6080Land Rover Disco Sport71Kia Sportage70
Large Crossover/SUV (Sub R1-million)
Toyota Fortuner1070Ford Everest536Toyota Land Cruiser 20090Jeep Grand Cherokee65Jeep Wrangler38Mitsubishi Pajero Sport38Toyota Prado38Mahindra XUV31Chevrolet Trailblazer26Audi Q721
Bakkies
Toyota Hilux3392Ford Ranger2566Nissan NP2001565Isuzu KB1372Nissan NP300 Hardbody1232Chevrolet Utility677Volkswagen Amarok358Hyundai H100337Toyota Land Cruiser210Nissan Navara175Kia K270094Mahindra Scorpio Pik-Up89
*BMW and Mercedes-Benz do report monthly sales figures