VFACTS for January: Sales steady, but SUVs surge

SUVs are closing the gap on passenger vehicles in the local market, VFACTS sales data for January reveals.

The difference was close to 16,000 sales in January last year, but from last month that gap is now a little over 12,000. Passenger vehicles sold 39,799 for January 2015, and SUVs recorded sales of 27,679.

"The continuing popularity of SUVs is a reflection of the versatility of these vehicles. SUVs now represent 33.7 per cent of the market and we expect this trend to continue as we move through 2015," said Tony Weber, Chief Executive of the FCAI (Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries).

As a class, SUVs rose 6.9 per cent, year on year, with the bulk of the growth in the small (+17.9%) and medium (+9.5%) segments. In contrast, passenger vehicle sales fell 4.3 per cent

Light commercial vehicles sold just 33 fewer vehicles for January, year on year – with a total number of 12,958. The total market amounted to 82,116, which was 169 fewer than January 2014.

While one month is not indicative in itself, January's shift in balance between passenger vehicles and SUVs – plus the lower overall sales – suggests the same market forces that dominated in 2014 are still active. According to the FCAI, government and business sales were down, but private buyers had picked up slightly.

Top selling brands for January were: Toyota (13,661), Mazda (9006), Holden (8401), Hyundai (6901), Ford (5357), Nissan (4537), Volkswagen (4397), Mitsubishi (4080), Subaru (3104) and Honda (2703). Only Nissan, Volkswagen, Subaru and Honda posted stronger sales for the month, year on year.

The 10 best selling cars during January were: Mazda3 (3903), Toyota Corolla (3472), Toyota Hilux (2331), Hyundai i30 (2092), Holden Cruze (1870), Holden Commodore (1784), Ford Ranger (1784), Mazda CX-5 (1699), Hyundai ix35 (1636) and Volkswagen Golf (1559).