These were South Africa’s top-selling car brands in July

South African new-vehicle sales posted a mixed picture last month, with a steep drop in passenger cars and a sharp increase for light commercials and bakkies.

According to figures released by motor industry body Naamsa, the passenger-car market, at 27,839 units, registered a decline of 9.7% compared with July 2022, while bakkies sold 12,666 units for a 32.6% gain.

The combined new-vehicle market, at 43,389 units, is 1.3% up from July 2022.

For the year to date, overall new-vehicle sales are up 4.4% compared with the first seven months of 2022.

Naamsa CEO Mikel Mabasa said new-vehicle buyers are breathing a sigh of relief after the South African Reserve Bank paused interest rates at 8.25% in July, after 10 consecutive hike rates totalling 475 cumulative basis points since November 2021.

“The unchanged rates and improvements in inflation rates bode well for the car market as the second-largest household investment for many South African consumers, considering distressed borrowing patterns among households as debt service costs share of disposable income remain high at 8.4%, on average,” said Mabasa.

Toyota remained the country’s most popular brand last month, ahead of Volkswagen.

These were the top 15 brands in July:

Toyota — 10,812

Volkswagen — 5,797

Suzuki — 4,361

Hyundai — 2,878

Ford — 2,500

Nissan — 2,308

Haval — 2,030

Isuzu — 1,903

Renault — 1,707

Chery — 1,375

Kia — 1,372

Mahindra — 929

BMW — 883

Mercedes-Benz — 685

Daimler Truck — 423