New-vehicle sales in SA showed signs of getting back into gear last month with 41,588 cars and commercial vehicles exiting showrooms. It was a small rise over the 41,035 units sold in October but a substantial 6.6% increase over November 2020.
The evergreen Toyota Hilux as usual topped last month’s charts, but behind it the bulk of sales went to compact hatchbacks and crossovers, as part of a buy-down trend due to middle-class disposable income coming under pressure.
The new Toyota Corolla Cross was the top-performing passenger car, and in its first month it overtook both the VW Polo Vivo and VW Polo. It will be interesting to watch the sales battle between this trio in the coming months, especially once the facelifted Polo arrives in the first quarter of 2022.
Suzuki was a popular player in the compact segment, with the S-Presso its top-selling model ahead of the Swift. It was SA’s third best-selling brand behind Toyota and VW, and the 3,082 units in November was a hair’s breadth behind Suzuki’s overall record of 3,134 units sold in September.
Hyundai, Kia and Renault also moved a lot of metal in the compact-car segment last month, with former strong sellers like the Ford Figo and Datsun Go experiencing dips in the face of newer rivals.
CAR SALES
Here are SA’s most popular compact cars
Buyers flock to small hatches and crossovers as economy bites
Group motoring editor
Image: Supplied
New-vehicle sales in SA showed signs of getting back into gear last month with 41,588 cars and commercial vehicles exiting showrooms. It was a small rise over the 41,035 units sold in October but a substantial 6.6% increase over November 2020.
The evergreen Toyota Hilux as usual topped last month’s charts, but behind it the bulk of sales went to compact hatchbacks and crossovers, as part of a buy-down trend due to middle-class disposable income coming under pressure.
The new Toyota Corolla Cross was the top-performing passenger car, and in its first month it overtook both the VW Polo Vivo and VW Polo. It will be interesting to watch the sales battle between this trio in the coming months, especially once the facelifted Polo arrives in the first quarter of 2022.
Suzuki was a popular player in the compact segment, with the S-Presso its top-selling model ahead of the Swift. It was SA’s third best-selling brand behind Toyota and VW, and the 3,082 units in November was a hair’s breadth behind Suzuki’s overall record of 3,134 units sold in September.
Hyundai, Kia and Renault also moved a lot of metal in the compact-car segment last month, with former strong sellers like the Ford Figo and Datsun Go experiencing dips in the face of newer rivals.
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SA’s top-selling compact vehicles — November 2021
Toyota Corolla Cross — 1,757
VW Polo Vivo — 1,608
Toyota Starlet — 1,477
VW Polo — 1,221
Suzuki S-Presso — 926
Toyota Agya — 911
Renault Kwid — 876
Suzuki Swift — 859
VW T-Cross — 838
Kia Picanto — 729
Renault Triber — 719
Toyota Urban Cruiser — 699
VW Polo Sedan — 669
Ford Ecosport — 630
Hyundai Atos — 551
Hyundai Creta — 525
Haval Jolion — 468
Hyundai Grand i10 — 444
Kia Sonet — 439
Toyota Rumion — 375
Nissan Magnite — 371
Hyundai Venue — 360
Kia Rio — 328
Suzuki Dzire — 314
Suzuki Vitara Brezza — 310
Nissan Almera — 269
Renault Kiger — 257
Suzuki Jimny — 252
Hyundai i20 — 245
VW T-Roc — 235
Kia Seltos — 217
Honda Amaze — 205
Mahindra KUV — 171
Suzuki Ertiga — 168
Renault Duster — 150
Kia Pegas — 124
Hyundai Kona — 111
Peugeot 208 — 111
Ford Figo — 105
Datsun Go — 105
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