The Australian new car market headed towards pre-covid levels in October according to data released today by The Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI).

 

In October, a total of 81,220 new vehicles were sold, a decline of just 1.5 per cent when compared to October 2019 when 82,456 vehicles were sold.

 

Tony Weber, chief executive of the FCAI, said the results were welcome news for the automotive industry.

 

“After a very challenging year, we are seeing ‘green shoots’ in the Australian new vehicle market. Every state and territory except Victoria and Tasmania have seen significant growth and, given the circumstances, Victoria’s result is seen as encouraging,” Mr Weber said.

 

“These results mark the 31st month of decreasing sales for the industry, which has experienced a series of financial and market challenges during the period.”

 

“However, the green shoots that we are seeing in October give us great hope that we may begin to see further recovery during the coming months.”

 

“Nationally, the state of industry operations is returning to normal as COVID-19 restrictions ease.  Additionally, Government initiatives such as a constructive budget that included the instant asset write off, along with more accessible finance for consumers, is also acting as a welcome stimulus for the industry.”

 

Cumulatively, the year to date figures reflected the difficult times the industry has experienced during 2020. For the period from January to October, new vehicle sales totalled 726,111. This represents a decrease of 18.8 per cent when compared to the same period in 2019 when 893,920 sales were reported.

 

Toyota bettered its 2019 result by almost 15 per cent to record 19,505 sales which represents a 24 per cent market share. The HiLux, RAV4, Prado, Corolla and LandCruiser all finished in the top ten.

 

Second-placed Mazda recorded an increase of 17.1 per cent (7457 sales) while third-placed Hyundai was down a significant 20.2 per cent.

 

Other brands that finished in positive territory included Ford (up 17.4 per cent), Kia (up 4.8 per cent), Isuzu (up 15.7 per cent), Audi (up 18.9 per cent), Skoda (up 14.8 per cent),

Porsche (up 32.7 per cent) and BMW (up 3.2 per cent). Jeep also managed a jump of 40.7 per cent.

 

Lower volume Chinese brands MG (1680 sales, up 120 per cent) and LDV (1117, up 123 per cent) defied the market to record greatly improved results, albeit from a low base.

 

Jaguar (down 56 per cent), Citroen (down 50 per cent), Land Rover (down 30.7 per cent), Lexus (down 27.1 per cent), Honda (down 26.4 per cent), Volkswagen (down 26.3 per cent), Subaru (down 12.1 per cent), Nissan (down 11.8 per cent), Mercedes-Benz (down 9.4 per cent), and Mitsubishi (down 6.3 per cent) all finished the month on the back foot.

 

The top five selling models for the month were the Toyota HiLux, Ford Ranger, Toyota RAV4, Toyota Prado and Toyota Corolla.

 

A full segment by segment breakdown is included below.

 

 

Toyota HiLux - 4444, up 26.4 per cent

Ford Ranger - 4217, up 33.4 per cent

Toyota RAV4 - 4084, up 91.6 per cent

Toyota Prado - 2207, up 45.9 per cent

Toyota Corolla - 1943, down 8.2 per cent

Isuzu D-Max - 1932, up 51.5 per cent

Mazda CX-5 - 1912, up 11.9 per cent

Hyundai Tucson - 1678, down 0.9 per cent

Toyota LandCruiser Wagon - 1640, up 23.8 per cent

Kia Cerato - 1619, down 11.4 per cent

 

 

Toyota - 19,505, up 14.8 per cent

Mazda - 7457, up 17.1 per cent

Hyundai - 5951, down 20.2 per cent

Ford - 5744, up 17.4 per cent

Kia - 5304, up 4.8 per cent

Mitsubishi - 4510, down 6.3 per cent

Nissan - 3539, down 11.8 per cent

Volkswagen - 3112, down 26.3 per cent

Subaru - 2902, down 12.1 per cent

Mercedes-Benz - 2288, down 11.5 per cent

 

 

Micro cars: Kia Picanto 401, Fiat 500 63, Mitsubishi Mirage 22

Light cars: MG 3 872, Mazda 2 424, Kia Rio 379

Light cars over $40k: Mini 177, Audi A1 36, Citroen 2

Small cars: Toyota Corolla 1942, Kia Cerato 1619, Hyundai i30 1431

Small cars over $40k: Mercedes A-Class 350, Audi A3 338, BMW 1 Series 110

Medium cars: Toyota Camry 1263, Skoda Octavia 230, Mazda 6 146

Medium cars over $60k: Mercedes C-Class 312, BMW 3 Series 272, Mercedes CLA 172

Large cars: Kia Stinger 137, Hoden Commodore 81, Skoda Superb 30

Large cars over $70k: Mercedes E-Class 58, BMW 5 Series 48, Mercedes CLS 41

Upper large cars: Mercedes S-Class 46, BMW 7 Series 9, BMW 8 Series GC 7

People movers: Kia Carnival 286, Honda Odyssey 87, Hyundai iMax 73

Sports cars: Ford Mustang 185, Subaru BRZ 62, Hyundai Veloster 60

Sports cars over $80k: Mercedes C-Class 69, Mercedes E-Class 52, Toyota Supra 20

Sports over $200k: Porsche 911 39, Ferrari 22, Lamborghini 2D 11

Light SUV: Mazda CX-3 1233, Hyundai Venue 418, Suzuki Jimny 372

Small SUV: Kia Seltos 1214, Hyundai Kona 1130, Mitsubishi ASX 1119

Small SUV over $40k: Audi Q3 346, Mercedes GLA 319, Volvo XC40 273

Medium SUV: Toyota RAV4 4084, Mazda CX-5 1912, Hyundai Tucson 1678

Medium SUV over $60k: BMW X3/X4 539, Mercedes GLC 399, Volvo XC60 309

Large SUV: Toyota Prado 2207, Ford Everest 601, Mazda CX-9 597

Large SUV over $70k: BMW X5/X6 356, Mercedes GLE 261, Audi Q7 136

Upper large SUV: Toyota LandCruiser 1640, Nissan Patrol 373

Upper large SUV over $100k: BMW X7 65, Land Rover Discovery 51, Mercedes GLS 49

Vans under 2.5t: Volkswagen Caddy 174, Renault Kangoo 25, Peugeot Partner 19

Vans 2.5-3.5t: Toyota HiAce 1049, Hyundai iLoad 649, LDV G10 264

Vans over 3.5t: Mercedes Sprinter 167, VW Crafter 153, Renault Master 130

4×2 utes: Toyota HiLux 1038, Isuzu D-Max 602, Ford Ranger 409

4×4 utes: Ford Ranger 3801, Toyota HiLux 3406, Isuzu D-Max 1330