VFacts: Aussie market continues up despite lockdowns

DESPITE several key states having been plunged into lockdown, the Australian new car industry has continued to post positive growth this year with 84,161 vehicles sold last month, marking a 16.1 per cent improvement on July 2020.

Queensland, Victoria, Western Australia and the Northern Territory were the front-runners of this success, all recording improvements of more than 20 per cent while New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) went in the other direction, especially NSW (-11.2%).

Nevertheless, the other states’ and territory’s performances have ensured 2021’s upward trajectory has continued with the yearly tally now sitting at 651,629, equating to a 26.5 per cent improvement on the first seven month of 2020.

Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) chief executive Tony Weber said the market’s growth showed the “underlying strength, confidence and resilience in the market” despite the lockdowns and ongoing delivery issues.

“We are also seeing the trend of restocking in the rental segment, with growth of 231.4 per cent reflecting the increasing demand for local tourism and travel,” he said.

“Also significant this month is the strong demand for Electric (EV) and plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEV) in Victoria and NSW where the State Governments have introduced a road user charge offset by consumer grants and continuing infrastructure investment.”

Given its dominance all through the previous months, it should come as no surprise that Toyota boasted the biggest share (21%) of the market in July, shifting 17,643 vehicles – almost double the amount Mazda did in second (8919/10.6%).

Behind the leaders, Ford rounded out the podium with 5569 sales (6.6%), just a few hundred units clear of Mitsubishi in fourth (5302/6.3%).

As a result of the triple diamond’s strong showing, Kia was bumped down to fifth (5202/6.2%) however it still managed to get the better of its sister company, Hyundai, which finished July with 5062 deliveries and a 6.0 per cent market share.

The only European brand to crack the top 10 last month, Volkswagen maintained its consistency to once again claim seventh spot thanks to its 3840 sales (4.6%).

Even with the Victorian and New South Wales lockdowns, Isuzu Ute managed to improve on June’s tenth place with an eighth in July, chalking up 3403 deliveries (4.0%).

Chinese challenger MG finished ninth with 3313 new registrations (3.9%) while Nissan rounded out the top 10 (2691/3.2%).

A lot like the lower ranks of the manufacturer’s top 10, the raging battle for individual supremacy between the Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux took another turn last month, this time in favour of the Japanese ute, of which Toyota sold 4610 compared to Ford’s 4064 Ranger sales.

In a surprise upset, the Toyota Corolla claimed third with 2535 deliveries, denying the Isuzu D-Max (2427) a second consecutive month in the top three by just 108 units.

Mazda’s ever-popular CX-5 (2389) was the fifth-most popular model, narrowly besting one of its chief rivals, in the form the Toyota RAV4 (2345), by 44 registrations.

The fourth of four Toyotas within the top 10, the Prado notched up 2251 sales last month to finish in seventh while the Hyundai i30 took eighth with 1914 sales.

The aging but still popular Mitsubishi Outlander came home ninth thanks to its 1792 deliveries, just six solitary units clear of the MG ZS (1786) in tenth.

In terms of segmentation, the passenger vehicle market has continued its gradual decline in popularity with sales down 3.0 per cent last month in comparison with July 2020 (17,619 vs 18,157), despite the surge in popularity of the Corolla and consistency of the i30.

The SUV market predictably continued its march upwards, posting a 15 per cent year-on-year improvement (42,020 vs 36,553), however it was the light commercial vehicles that were the reals winners with sales up 40.9 per cent to 20,994, of which 16,147 were 4x4 pick-ups.

Despite the increase in popularity of electric (515, +273.3%) and plug-in hybrid (325, +146.2%) vehicles, sales of electrified vehicles as a whole actually declined by almost 1000 units last month in comparison to July 2020, all on the account of hybrid vehicles.

Last month, 5152 new hybrids were purchased – more than 1500 less than in the corresponding month last year.

Top 10 Brands July 2021

Top 10 Models July 2021