NZ sales: LCV growth lifts market

THE continued popularity of one-tonne pick-ups and commercial vans have ensured another strong month of sales in New Zealand’s new-vehicle market, but interest in passenger cars and SUVs has dipped according to official figures released today.

Overall registrations for August of 13,063 were up by 3.0 per cent over the same month last year, with SUV and passenger car sales dropping by 3.2 per cent for a haul of 8607 units.

Sales of light-commercial vehicles increased by 17.9 per cent last month, hitting 4456 units, and the segment is up by 19.6 per cent year to date to the end of August.

NZ Motor Industry Association chief executive officer David Crawford said the overall year-to-date results had reached a new high this year, which highlighted the growth of the industry in the past decade.

“Year to date, the new vehicle sector passed 100,000 registrations during August, the quickest ever in a calendar year,” he said. “By way of comparison, at the height of the global financial crisis in 2009 there were only 45,384 vehicles sold to the end of August compared to 103,923 this year, a 129 per cent increase. Registrations were 11.3 per cent above this time in 2016 and registration of 13,063 vehicles for the month of August were up 3.0 per cent on August 2016.”

Market leader Toyota retained its position at the top of the overall sales charts with a haul of 2511 units for a 19.2 per cent share of the market, representing a 10 per cent hike over its August 2016 result.

Ford had a reversal of fortunes, with its sales dropping 10 per cent over last August for a total of 1305 units, while Holden’s 1071 registrations last month was 1.8 per cent – or just 20 units – down on its August 2016 result.

Mazda held on to fourth place overall with 1055 sales – only 16 units behind Holden – which is 12 per cent ahead of last August, while fifth-placed Mitsubishi also grew its sales by 15 per cent for 916 sales thanks to strong showings from the Outlander mid-size SUV and the Triton ute.

Outside the top five, Nissan dropped slightly to record 703 sales (-3.3 per cent), while a solid result from the Sportage SUV gave Kia a 26 per cent boost over last August with 632 sales.

Continued interest in the new-generation Swift helped Suzuki to a 6.0 per cent lift to 517 sales, with Honda’s 496-unit haul representing a 17 per cent lift and Volkswagen rounding out the top 10 with 473 sales, a 4.2 per cent dip.

While Kia continued its meteoric rise, its Korean sister brand Hyundai was one of the big losers last month, dropping a massive 36 per cent compared with last August, and pushing it from sixth place a year ago to 11th. Slower demand for its Tucson and Santa Fe SUVs appears to have impacted its sales.

Toyota was top of the passenger and SUV sales chart with 1397 units, with Mazda (814) and Holden (686) both trailing.

Light commercial sales were also led by Toyota with 1114 sales for a 25 per cent share of the market, with Ford closing in on 833 units and 19 per cent share and Holden well behind on 385 sales and a nine per cent stake in the market.

The Toyota HiLux overtook the Ford Ranger as the best-selling vehicle in NZ last month with the HiLux capturing 779 sales to the Ranger’s 690.

Toyota’s Corolla was the third best-selling model overall and the country’s most popular passenger car or SUV with 540 sales, followed by the Kia Sportage on 370 units and the Holden Colorado rounding out the top 10 on 361 sales.

Brand T dominated the rental car sales charts last month, with the Corolla, HiAce and Yaris all featuring in the top five, while the RAV4 and Camry grabbed sixth and 10th place respectively.

Mid-size SUVs represented the largest market segment last month with a 15 per cent share, followed by pick-up/cab-chassis 4x4 with 14 per cent and small passenger cars on 11 per cent.

NZ Top 10 makes August 2017

Rank	Make	Sales	Share %
1	Toyota	2511	19.2
2	Ford	1305	9.9
3	Holden	1071	8.1
4	Mazda	1055	8.0
5	Mitsubishi	916	7.0
6	Nissan	703	5.3
7	Kia	632	4.8
8	Suzuki	517	3.9
9	Honda	496	3.8
10	Volkswagen	473	3.6