Johannesburg – 2016 will go down as a dismal year for vehicle sales in South Africa, with Naamsa’s numbers showing an 11.4 percent drop compared to 2015, largely due to above-average vehicle price increases on the back of a weaker rand and low consumer confidence.
On the upside, experts are predicting a modest upturn during the second half of this year, providing that the year doesn’t dish up any nasty economic surprises.
There were no big changes to the status quo as far as South Africa’s best selling cars were concerned.
The two best selling vehicles overall were bakkies, with Toyota moving 35 428 Hiluxes and Ford’s Ranger following closely at 32 468. We’ll deal with all the bakkies in a separate story, so for now let’s take a look at South Africa’s most popular conventional passenger cars and SUVs. Note, however, that brands such as Hyundai, Kia and Mercedes-Benz could not be included in this list as they do not report individual sales figures.
1. Volkswagen Polo Vivo
Total sold: 28 830
Best month: Jan (2336)
Worst month: Nov: (1649)
Monthly average: 2402.5
2. Volkswagen Polo
Total sold: 23 279
Best month: Oct, 2458
Worst Month: Dec, 1504
Monthly average: 1940
3. Toyota Corolla, Quest & Auris
Total sold: 17 499
Best month: Sep, 2061
Worst Month: Dec, 957
Monthly average: 1458.2
4. Toyota Etios
Total sold: 12 768
Best month: Jan, 1937
Worst Month: May, 731
Monthly average: 1064
5. Ford Fiesta
Total sold: 12 204
Best month: Oct, 1856
Worst Month: Apr, 536
Monthly average: 1017
6. Ford EcoSport
Total sold: 11 442
Best month: May, 1169
Worst Month: June, 805
Monthly average: 953.5
7. Toyota Fortuner
Total sold: 11 060
Best month: July, 1418
Worst Month: Feb, 6
Monthly average: 921.7
8. BMW 3 Series
Total sold: 6680
Best month: Dec, 849
Worst Month: July, 363
Monthly average: 556.7
9. Renault Sandero
Total sold: 5861
Best month: Mar, 636
Worst Month: Nov: 211
Monthly average: 488.4
10. Ford Figo
Total sold: 5480
Best month: Mar, 1180
Worst Month: July, 156
Monthly average: 456.7
Cars that nearly made it:
Renault Clio (5093), Toyota Rav4 (5021), Toyota Avanza (4904), VW Golf (4496), Chevrolet Spark (4306).
What to watch in 2017?
Renault’s Kwid was only introduced towards the end of 2016, but it’s been selling up a storm, with 752 units sold in December alone. Expect to see it on this list next year.
Many of SA’s most popular cars are also due for upgrades during the course of the year, including the Toyota Etios and Corolla, VW Golf and Renault Sandero. This could see them climb a notch or two on the sales charts.