VFACTS October: Ford Ranger the one to beat
Ford Ranger outsells Toyota HiLux again last month as race for nation’s top-selling model intensifiesThe ever-popular Ford Ranger got the better of the Toyota HiLux on the sales charts again last month to make it two in a row for the Blue Oval brand’s all-important ute and now sets up a big title fight for bragging rights as the nation’s top-selling model in 2021.
Now in run-out ahead of an all-new replacement arriving within the next six months, the Ford Ranger racked up 4135 sales in October compared to the 3961 for the Toyota HiLux.
The successful month for Ranger means it’s now 3066 units behind the HiLux year-to-date – 41,686 compared to 44,752 – with two months of trading left and Toyota battling lengthy delivery times for the majority of its portfolio.
But, while Ford was able to close the gap to Toyota in terms of the best-selling models, it forfeited third place overall to Hyundai which chalked up 6115 sales last month, almost a third of which were contributed by the Hyundai i30 small car.
The improved performance takes the Korean brand’s tally for the year to 60,284 units – 553 clear of Ford (59,731) which could ultimately end up losing fourth position to Kia (58,169) over the next eight weeks given the margin is now only 1562 units and supplies of the new-generation Kia Sportage are looking strong.
It looks as though supply lines from overseas factories will determine some of the minor placings among the leading brands this year, although Toyota predictably still holds the monopoly year-to-date with 192,166 sales and a formidable 21.6 per cent market share.
This market dominance has been plain to see throughout the year, with the Japanese giant regularly boasting four or five models within the top 10 best-sellers.
And it was no different last month with the HiLux, LandCruiser (2031), Corolla (1989) and RAV4 (1670) securing second, third, fourth and seventh position for the month respectively.
How long some of these models can sustain their success remains to be seen, especially the Toyota LandCruiser given its sales were made up of the initial batch of 300 Series and what looks to be remaining stock of 70 Series.
Indeed, Toyota confirmed last month that 70 Series delivery times for new orders had blown out to between nine and 10 months, while some versions of the new 300 Series aren’t due until later next year.
Nestled in between and around the various Toyotas were the Hyundai i30 (1946) and Tucson (1532) in fifth and eighth respectively, Isuzu D-MAX (1694) in sixth, Mitsubishi ASX (1464) in ninth and the ageing Nissan X-TRAIL (1420) in 10th.
Mazda is comfortably holding onto second place in the market this year with 88,746 deliveries, despite managing only fourth position last month (with 5181 sales) behind Toyota (15,395), Hyundai (6115) and Ford (5465).
Kia (4853) and Mitsubishi (4203) were fifth and sixth respectively, while Nissan (3397) returned to the top 10 after two months away thanks to improved performances by the X-TRAIL and Navara 4x4.
MG (3136) clung onto ninth and Volkswagen (2912) rounded out the top 10.
October was also a key month for Honda, which had identified the final quarter as the point at which its sales should reflect its typical running rate after its controversial move to an ‘agency’ business operation from July 1.
After averaging only 896 sales per month in the third quarter, Honda recorded 1100 new vehicle registrations last month – still below its forecast 1650 monthly target, but an improvement all the same.
In total, 74,650 new vehicles were sold last month – an 8.1 per cent decline compared to October 2020. It was also 9589 units behind October 2019, which now sees the market slip behind where it was at the same point two years ago, before the COVID-19 pandemic struck.
Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) chief executive Tony Weber attributed the downturn to the ongoing micro-processor shortages.
“Automotive manufacturers like all those in the global manufacturing sector are dealing with a micro-processor shortage which is leading to longer wait times to get products to market,” he said.
“Australians are continuing to purchase vehicles, and car-makers are working to deliver products to our shores.”
Top 10 models (October 2021):
Ford Ranger – 4135
Toyota HiLux – 3961
Toyota LandCruiser – 2031
Toyota Corolla – 1989
Hyundai i30 – 1946
Isuzu D-MAX – 1694
Toyota RAV4 – 1670
Hyundai Tucson – 1532
Mitsubishi ASX – 1464
Nissan X-TRAIL – 1420
Top 10 brands (2021 year to date):
Toyota – 192,166
Mazda – 88,746
Hyundai – 60,284
Ford – 59,731
Kia – 58,169
Mitsubishi – 56,355
Volkswagen – 35,227
Nissan – 35,049
MG – 32,014
Subaru – 31,499
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