New car sales rebounded in June with the industry recording 110,234 sales according to VFACTS data released today by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI).

 

Traditionally, the end of the financial year is a busy month, however, the result was down 6.4 per cent when compared to June 2019.

 

June was the strongest result since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis which saw March sales down 17.9 per cent, April sales down 48.5 per cent and May sales down 35.3 per cent.

 

FCAI chief executive, Tony Weber, attributed the slight recovery to the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, seasonality, the extension of the Federal Government’s instant asset write-off scheme, and brand and dealer pro-activity.

 

“Some states have seen the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, and this has increased floor traffic through dealerships,” Mr Weber said.

 

“In addition, June is traditionally a very strong month for new vehicle sales. The End of Financial Year campaigns are well known, so it’s an excellent time for businesses and consumers to replace their vehicles.”

 

“In June 2020, this has been reflected in strong results for business purchases, which have increased by 6.3 per cent on June 2019.”

 

“The extension of the Government’s instant asset write-off scheme has also been a positive influence.  This program allows businesses to bring forward tax deductions for eligible expenditure.”

 

“Finally, we have seen a strong surge in marketing activity from both brands and dealerships, who are offering an array of attractive retail packages in a bid to recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

 

Despite June’s result, it was the 27th consecutive month of decreasing sales for the automotive industry, a fact which the FCAI attributes to a mix of environmental, political, financial and health issues within the Australian market.

 

Mr Weber added that associated Government initiatives had likely supported the slight recovery.

 

“Stimulus packages from the Federal Government, such as Job Keeper and Job Seeker, have helped to restore some consumer confidence and supported the small bounce back during June.

 

“However, there’s no doubt that the new vehicle industry in Australia is still under high pressure.  We’re not out of the woods yet,” Mr Weber said.

 

Cumulatively, 442,415 new vehicles have been sold at the half-way point of 2020 which represents a drop of 20.2 per cent compared to the same period last year.

 

Passenger cars were down by 8828 sales (-26.1 per cent) and SUVs shed 1578 sales (-2.9 per cent). The light commercial market defied the market to grow by 2273 sales (+8.6 per cent).

 

Toyota was again the best-selling brand in June with 22867 sales, followed by Mazda with 9420 sales, Hyundai with 7737 sales, Ford with 7624 sales and Mitsubishi with 7419 sales.

 

Remarkably, Toyota managed to grow 7.9 per cent and increase its market share from 18 per cent in June last year to 20.7 per cent this year.

 

Other brands that defied the market conditions include Audi (up 84.6 per cent thanks to fresh metal), BMW (up 32 per cent), Ford (by 6.6 per cent) and Volvo (up 40 per cent).

 

The often-maligned US brand Jeep found some sunshine and improved by 7.2 per cent.

 

Smaller marques kicking some goals included Ram Trucks (up a massive 130.5 per cent), Haval (up 99.5 per cent), Mini (up 49.5 per cent), MG (up 32.9 per cent) and LDV (up 31 per cent).

 

The top-selling vehicle was the Toyota HiLux with 6537 sales (up 21.1 per cent on June 2019), followed by the Ford Ranger with 5329 sales (up 9.9 per cent), the Toyota Corolla with 3008 sales (down 4.1 per cent), and the Mitsubishi Triton with 2721 sales (up 1.0 per cent).

 

A full segment by segment breakdown is included below.

 

 

Toyota HiLux - 6537, up 21.1 per cent

Ford Ranger - 5329, up 9.9 per cent

Toyota Corolla - 3008, down 4.1 per cent

Mitsubishi Triton - 2721, up 1.0 per cent

Toyota RAV4 - 2632, up 7.5 per cent

Mazda CX-5 – 2530, down 13.1 per cent

Toyota Prado – 2374, up 16.1 per cent

Hyundai i30 - 2368, down 29.2 per cent

Hyundai Tucson - 2206, down 5.9 per cent

Kia Cerato - 2016, down 28.8 per cent

 

 

Toyota - 22,867, up 7.9 per cent

Mazda - 9420, down 12.8 per cent

Hyundai - 7737, down 22.6 per cent

Ford - 7624, up 6.6 per cent

Mitsubishi - 7419, down 16.6 per cent

Volkswagen - 5737, down 1.0 per cent

Kia - 5727, down 20.5 per cent

Mercedes - 4437, up 31.4 per cent

Nissan - 4260, down 22.7 per cent

Subaru - 3775, down 18.2 per cent

 

 

Micro cars: Kia Picanto 346, Mitsubishi Mirage 102, Fiat 500 65

Light cars: MG 3 643, Suzuki Swift 537, Kia Rio 491

Light cars over $40k: Mini 215, Audi A1 65, Citroen C3 6

Small cars: Toyota Corolla 3008, Hyundai i30 2368, Kia Cerato 2016

Small cars over $40k: Mercedes A-Class 901, BMW 1 Series 397, Audi A3 358

Medium cars: Toyota Camry 1123, Mazda 6 177, Skoda Octavia 152

Medium cars over $60k: BMW 3 Series 561, Mercedes C-Class 492, Mercedes CLA 315

Large cars: Kia Stinger 247, Holden Commodore 43, Skoda Superb 25

Large cars over $70k: BMW 5 Series 130, Mercedes E-Class 127, Audi A6 27

Upper large cars: Chrysler 300 34, BMW 7 Series 22, Mercedes-Benz S-Class 17

People movers: Kia Carnival 465, Honda Odyssey 125, LDV G10 74

Sports cars: Ford Mustang 419, Hyundai Veloster 66, BMW 2 Series 53

Sports cars over $80k: Mercedes C-Class 196, BMW 4 Series 74, BMW Z4 62

Sports over $200k: Porsche 911 34, BMW 8 Series 16, Bentley Continental GT 11

Light SUV: Mazda CX-3 1157, Hyundai Venue 344, VW T-Cross 449

Small SUV: Mitsubishi ASX 1457, Hyundai Kona 1385, Toyota C-HR 1199

Small SUV over $40k: Volvo XC40 490, Audi Q3 479, BMW X1 392

Medium SUV: Toyota RAV4 2632, Mazda CX-5 2530, Hyundai Tucson 2206

Medium SUV over $60k: Mercedes GLC/Coupe 1029, Lexus NX 698, BMW X3/X4 604

Large SUV: Toyota Prado 2374, Toyota Kluger 1243, Isuzu MU-X 1014

Large SUV over $70k: Mercedes GLE/Coupe 453, BMW X5/X6 435, Lexus RX 337

Upper large SUV: Toyota LandCruiser 1521, Nissan Patrol 211, Land Rover Discovery 164

Vans under 2.5t: Volkswagen Caddy 265, Renault Kangoo 83, Peugeot Partner 26

Vans 2.5-3.5t: Toyota HiAce 1014, Hyundai iLoad 542, Ford Transit Cust. 403

4×2 utes: Toyota HiLux 1726, Isuzu D-Max 505, Mazda BT-50 453

4×4 utes: Ford Ranger 5092, Toyota HiLux 4811, Mitsubishi Triton 2292