New car sales fell by 28.8 per cent in August according to VFACTS data released today by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI).

 

A total of 60,986 sales were reported during August well down on the 85,633 sales achieved throughout the corresponding month last year.

 

On a year to date basis, VFACTS reported 575,906 sales for the first eight months of 2020, down 20.4 per cent on the same period in 2019 when 723,283 sales were reported.

 

Given the state of the economy, the figures don’t come as much of a surprise, only yesterday the Australian Bureau of Statistics announced a 7.0 per cent drop in Gross Domestic Product for the June quarter – the largest drop ever recorded in a single quarter.

 

Under Stage 4 Restrictions, the Victorian market fell by a massive 65.9 per cent with only 8347 sales for the month. By comparison, sales in NSW were down by 16.3 per cent, Queensland was down by 14.1 per cent, and South Australia was down by 10.8 per cent.

 

Tony Weber, chief executive of the FCAI, said that while the overall industry was showing some response to stimulus packages, the story for Victoria was less than promising.

 

“The industry has moved swiftly to implement robust COVIDSafe protocols to ensure the health and wellbeing of employees and customers is preserved.

 

“However, it is particularly difficult for our members and their Victorian dealer networks under the current Stage 4 Restrictions, and this is reflected in the reduced sales figures.

 

“While we have the utmost respect for essential health priorities, the automotive industry supports the re-opening of our economy under appropriate COVIDSafe protocols,” Mr Weber said.

 

“We’ve seen 29 consecutive months of diminishing sales in this industry, and there’s no doubt our members are feeling the pinch. The move to commence the reopening of industry and markets, especially in Victoria, needs to start as soon as possible.”

 

SUVs commanded a 53.1 per cent market share (32,378 sales), passenger cars held 24.2 per cent market share (14,758 sales) and light commercials accounted for an 18.4 per cent slice (11,234 sales).

 

Toyota was the again the top-selling brand for the month, with 12,449 sales, followed by Mazda with 6921 sales, Hyundai with 4525 sales, Kia with 4521 sales, and Mitsubishi with 4308 sales.

 

The Toyota RAV4 was the nation’s number one selling vehicle for the second consecutive month, followed by the Ford Ranger, Mazda CX-5, Toyota Corolla and Hyundai i30.

 

Falling to ninth on the table was the Toyota HiLux, while it’s likely to retain its crown as the best-seller for the fifth year in a row, the recently launched updated model comes with a noticeable price hike.

 

A full segment by segment breakdown is included below.

 

 

Toyota RAV4 - 4825, up 140.5 per cent

Ford Ranger - 2935, down 7.7 per cent

Mazda CX-5 - 1884, up 4.8 per cent

Toyota Corolla - 1464, down 48.9 per cent

Hyundai i30 - 1429, down 49.2 per cent

Mitsubishi Triton - 1406, down 19.9 per cent

Mazda CX-3 - 1355, up 3.6 per cent

Kia Cerato - 1264, down 25.0 per cent

Toyota HiLux - 1217, down 66.9 per cent

Kia Seltos - 1046, NA

 

 

Toyota - 6921, down 25.5 per cent

Mazda - 7806, down 5.1 per cent

Hyundai - 4525, down 38.2 per cent

Kia - 4521, down 3.0 per cent

Mitsubishi - 4308, down 31.0 per cent

Ford - 3898, down 20.7 per cent

Volkswagen - 2785, down 32.1 per cent

Nissan - 2380, down 47.6 per cent

Mercedes-Benz - 2064, down 13.3 per cent

Subaru - 2052, down 42.2 per cent

 

 

Micro cars: Kia Picanto 343, Mitsubishi Mirage 68, Fiat 500 34

Light cars: MG 3 654, Kia Rio 445, VW Polo 340

Light cars over $40k: Mini 91, Renault Zoe 59, Audi A1 38

Small cars: Toyota Corolla 1464, Hyundai i30 1429, Kia Cerato 1264

Small cars over $40k: Mercedes A-Class 406, Audi A3 281, BMW 1 Series 164

Medium cars: Toyota Camry 910, Skoda Octavia 182, Mazda 6 174

Medium cars over $60k: Mercedes CLA 239, BMW 3 Series 173, Mercedes C-Class 155

Large cars: Kia Stinger 178, Holden Commodore 71, Skoda Superb 27

Large cars over $70k: Mercedes E-Class 53, BMW 5 Series 35, Audi A6 16

Upper large cars: Mercedes-Benz S-Class 10, BMW 8 Series GC 8, Mercedes-AMG GT 4D 5

People movers: Kia Carnival 284, Honda Odyssey 59, LDV G10 54

Sports cars: Ford Mustang 147, Hyundai Veloster 78, Mazda MX-5 53

Sports cars over $80k: Mercedes-Benz C-Class 75, Mercedes E-Class 36, BMW 4 Series 25

Sports over $200k: Porsche 911 25, Ferrari 11, BMW 8 Series Coupe 10

Light SUV: Mazda CX-3 1136, Hyundai Venue 357, Suzuki Jimny 306

Small SUV: Kia Seltos 1046, Mitsubishi ASX 929, Hyundai Kona 846

Small SUV over $40k: Volvo XC40 225, Mercedes-Benz GLA 201, BMW X1 164

Medium SUV: Toyota RAV4 4825, Mazda CX-5 1884, Nissan X-Trail 924

Medium SUV over $60k: Mercedes GLC/Coupe 385, BMW X3/X4 302, Volvo XC60 237

Large SUV: Toyota Kluger 601, Mazda CX-9 601, Isuzu MU-X 597

Large SUV over $70k: BMW X5/X6 197, Mercedes GLE/Coupe 171, VW Touareg 84

Upper large SUV: Toyota LandCruiser 893, Nissan Patrol 187

Upper large SUV over $100k: BMW X7 66, Mercedes GLS 45, Mercedes G-Class 44

Vans under 2.5t: Volkswagen Caddy 114, Renault Kangoo 25, Peugeot Partner 16

Vans 2.5-3.5t: Toyota HiAce 413, Hyundai iLoad 274, Renault Trafic 98

4×2 utes: Toyota HiLux 281, Ford Ranger 217, Mazda BT-50 205

4×4 utes: Ford Ranger 2718, Mitsubishi Triton 1218, Toyota HiLux 936