New car sales have started strongly in 2016, with Australians buying 84,373 new passenger cars, SUVs, and commercial vehicles in January 2016; 2.7% more than in January 2015.
The January 2016 market of 84,373 new vehicle sales is an increase of 2257 vehicle sales or 2.7% on January 2015 (82,116 vehicle sales).
January 2016 (24) had one less selling day than January 2015 (25), however this year saw an increase of 230.9 vehicle sales per day.
However, January 2016 industry volume is down 15,243 – or 15.3% – on December 2015 (99,616 vehicles).
The Mazda 3 overtook the Toyota Corolla as the highest selling model in January with 964 models more than the Corolla which sold 2758 models a 20% drop year-on-year. Another big winner in January was the Nissan Navara ute which saw a 60% increase in sales, and came in 10th place for the top selling models for January 2016, compared to January 2015 sales.
Toyota was market leader in January, followed by Mazda and Hyundai. Toyota leads Mazda with a margin of 2437 vehicle sales, or 2.9% over Mazda, which continues to close the gap on Toyota.
Releasing the January 2016 VFACTS figures, FCAI chief Tony Weber says: “January 2016 sales are particularly strong given the growth over 2015, which was a record year for new vehicle sales.
“Sales of SUVs and light commercial vehicles (LCV) have increased significantly compared to January 2015 figures. SUV sales are up 19.5% and LCV sales are up 11.9%.
Combined, the segments accounted for more than 56% of the total new car market in January 2016.
Business confidence was boosted in January, with sales to business buyers up 14.4%, compared to January 2015. Sales to government were consistent with January 2015 sales figures, and sales to private buyers fell 5.1%.
New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia’s new car markets had a strong start to the year, with sales up 6%, 3.8 % and 3.4%(respectively) in January 2015. The Australian Capital Territory and Victoria remained steady, with January 2016 sales marginally (1% or less) different to January 2015 sales.
Sales fell by 5.4% in the Northern Territory, 4.8% in Tasmania and 3% in Western Australia.
The Mazda3 was the most popular vehicle in January 2016, with 3722 of the small passenger cars sold, it was followed by the Toyota Corolla (2758), the Ford Ranger (2418) the Toyota Hilux (2341) and Hyundai Tucson (2065).
Toyota was the top selling brand in January 2016 with 14.8% of the market, followed by Mazda with 11.9%, Hyundai with 8.3%, Holden with 8.1%, and Nissan with 6.6%.
Top 10 individual models (by sales volume)
1. Mazda3 3722
2. Toyota Corolla 2758
3. Ford Ranger 2418
4. Toyota Hi-Lux 2341
5 Hyundai Tucson 2065
6. Hyundai i30 1852
7. Mazda CX-5 1750
8. Volkswagen Golf 1692
9. Holden Colorado 1691
10. Nissan Navara 1670
Top 10 Makes (Year To Date)
1 ▼ Toyota 12,453 14.8%
2 ▲ Mazda 10,016 11.9%
3 ▲ Hyundai 7001 8.3%
4 ▼ Holden 6824 8.1%
5 ▲ Nissan 5563 6.6%
6 ▲ Ford 5504 6.5%
7 ▲ Mitsubishi 5007 5.9%
8 ▼ Volkswagen 4341 5.1%
9 ▲ Subaru 3405 4%
10 ▲ Kia 3116 3.7%
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