Chery blossoms as new vehicle sales continue to rise in July

South Africa’s new vehicle sales have started the second half of 2026 off on a continuing positive note with a record 21^st month of ongoing increases in July.

Sweet Chery record

A month which saw no less than 12 vehicles post sales of more than 1 000 units, the new Toyota Hilux ended its first month full on top with an offset of 4 189 units.

While again followed by the Volkswagen Polo Vivo on 2 503, the combination of the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro and Cross provided the biggest surprise by placing third at the expense of the Ford Ranger.

Recording a total of 2 110 units, the Tiggo 4/Tiggo Cross also retains its standing as the best-selling Chinese and imported vehicle for a second month in a row.

Dropping a notch to fourth, the Ranger’s 2 063 units sold also makes it the only other vehicle to record more than 2 000 units.

Retaining its fifth place, the Isuzu D-Max raked in 1 954 sales, while the Suzuki Swift jumped two places from eighth in June to sixth in July with a total of 1 916.

A similar scenario applies to the Toyota Corolla Cross, which improves two places from ninth to seventh on 1 626, while at the other end, the Hyundai Grand i10 drops from sixth to eighth with 1 551 vehicles moved.

Completing the top 10, the Toyota Starlet returns with a four-place hike after finishing June in 13^th place.

With an offset of 1 453 units, the twin of the Suzuki Baleno finishes ahead of its platform stablemate, the Suzuki Fronx, whose 1 185 also sees it return to the top 10 after placing 12^th in June.

A newfound Ora

Outside the top 10, the biggest surprise came in the shape of the realigned GWM Ora 5 range, which now comprises combustion, hybrid and electric powertrains.

Placing within the top 10, the Ora 5 recorded 276 signatures in June, placing it ahead of, among others, the Volkswagen Tiguan (268), Toyota Land Cruiser Prado (255) and Toyota RAV4 (246).

After finishing outside the top 50 in its first full month in June, the Toyota Land Cruiser FJ bounced back with an offset in 344 units in July, while further up, the Volkswagen T-Cross tested the 700 mark with 693 units sold.

Best-selling brands

Out of the best-selling brands, Toyota broke its own monthly record uptake for yet another month, by moving 14 142 vehicles compared to June’s 12 417.

Keeping station in second and third were Suzuki on 5 994 and Volkswagen, whose sales include those of Audi, on 5 799.

Completing the top five, Hyundai and Ford also stayed steady with respective sales of 3 058 and 2 927.

Bolstered by the sales of the Tiggo 4 Pro/Cross, though, Chery jumped a position to sixth to leapfrog rival GWM as the best-selling Chinese vehicle brand for the first time.

With an offset of 2 709 unit, the Wuhu-based brand outranked the 2 504 units moved by its sparring partner from Baoding to hold the accolade of best-selling Chinese brand and product for the first time.

Behind, both Isuzu and Jetour retained their eighth and ninth places from June with sales of 2 435 and 2 034 respectively, while Kia returns to the top 10 with sales of 1 920.

Behind the first 10, BYD continued its steady climb with sales of 860, while in another first, GAC and JMC importer, Salvador Caetano, submitted 233 sales in its first month of reporting, thus placing it ahead of fellow countrymen Changan (165) and LDV (132), and legacy brands Honda (207) and Mazda (187).

Top 15

1. Toyota – 14 142
2. Suzuki – 5 994
3. Volkswagen – 5 799
4. Hyundai – 3 058
5. Ford – 2 927
6. Chery – 2 709
7. Great Wall Motors (GWM) – 2 504
8. Isuzu – 2 435
9. Jetour – 2 034
10. Kia – 1 920
11. Omoda & Jaecoo – 1 502
12. Mahindra – 1 458
13. Renault – 1 360
14. BMW – 1 256
15. BYD – 860

Month in detail

Helped by lower fuel prices, the July figures by the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (Naamsa) remained above 50 000 units, while continuing to test the 60 000 mark.

In total, the 57 708 units moved represents an 11.9% increase over the 51 588 units sold in July last year.

The rest of the various segments were as follows:

	Passenger Vehicles	Light Commercial Vehicles	Medium-Duty Commercial Vehicles	Heavy-Duty Commercial Vehicles	Exports
2025	36 354	12 401	706	2 097	37 114
2026	40 912	13 710	843	2 243	32 801
Variation	+12.5%	+10.6%	+19.4%	+7.0%	-11.6%

May Top 50 best-sellers

1. Toyota Hilux – 4 189
2. Volkswagen Polo Vivo – 2 513*
3. Chery Tiggo 4 – 2 110#
4. Ford Ranger – 2 063
5. Isuzu D-Max – 1 954
6. Suzuki Swift – 1 916
7. Toyota Corolla Cross – 1 626
8. Hyundai Grand i10 – 1 551*
9. Toyota Starlet – 1 453
10. Suzuki Fronx – 1 185
11. GWM Haval Jolion – 1 132
12. Suzuki Eritga – 1 085
13. Toyota Urban Cruiser – 968
14. Jetour T2 – 925
15. Omoda C5 – 889
16. Toyota Vitz – 855
17. Kia Sonet – 830*
18. Toyota Starlet Cross – 803
19. Volkswagen Polo – 756
20. Toyota Fortuner – 722
21. Toyota HiAce – 710*
22. Volkswagen T-Cross – 693
23. Mahindra Pik Up – 681
24. Mahindra XUV 3X0 – 657*
25. Toyota Rumion – 591
26. Tata Tiago – 587
27. Renault Triber – 562*
28. Hyundai i20 – 548
29. GWM P Series – 536
30. Toyota Land Cruiser 70-series – 496#
31. Jetour Dashing – 482
32. Suzuki Baleno – 473
33. Ford Territory – 469
34. Jetour T1 – 451
35. Kia Seltos – 435
36. Renault Kwid – 399
37. Hyundai Exter – 378
38. Nissan Magnite – 374*
39. Jaecoo J5 – 367
40. Chery Tiggo 7 – 360
41. GWM Haval H6 – 360
42. Volkswagen Amarok – 352
43. Citroën C3 – 349
44. Toyota Land Cruiser FJ – 344
45. Renault Kiger – 333
46. Volkswagen Polo Sedan – 317
47. Ford Everest – 287
48. GWM Ora 5 – 276
49. Volkswagen Tiguan – 268
50. Suzuki S-Presso – 265
    
    Note:
    *: Includes commercial variants
    #: Combination of two models