Chery Tiggo surprises, Jetour posts record sales in November
SA’s new vehicle sales eased slightly in November but remained above 50 000, with Jetour achieving record monthly figures.
Having broken through the 55 000-unit mark in October, South Africa’s new vehicle sales regressed slightly in November, but remained above 50 000 for the fifth month in a row.
Although once again dominated by the Toyota Hilux, The Citizen reports the biggest surprise involved the Chery Tiggo 4 breaking into the top five with sales of 1 858 units.
Somewhat strangely, the brand no longer lists individual sales of the Tiggo 4 Pro and Tiggo Cross, suggesting those of the latter – effectively the facelift version of the former in global markets and badged as the Tiggo 4 – have been combined for an overall figure.
In the biggest upset of the month, Chery-owned Jetour recorded its highest volume to date of 1 235 units, spearheaded by the T2, which amassed 545 in its first full month to become the marque’s best-seller above the Dashing.
Just outside the top 20, the GWM P Series range, consisting of the P300 and P500, also posted its highest numbers in recent months with a total of 668 units sold.
For the fourth month in a row, MG remained ensconced in the top 50, with the ZS accounting for 318 of the 618 vehicles sold by the Chinese-owned British brand.
Returning Changan, meanwhile, raked in 97 sales, placing it above Subaru (48) and struggling Proton, which no longer lists the X50 and X70 and only managed a sale apiece of the Saga sedan and X90 SUV.
Month in detail
In posting its 11th month of consecutive increases this year, and having gone without an overall sales decline since September last year, November figures by the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (Naamsa) showed an uptake of 12.5% from last year’s 48 783 to 54 896.
As in previous months, the various segments were mixed, with new passenger vehicles again testing 40 000 units after climbing 11% from last year’s 35 287 to 39 158.
Likewise, light commercial vehicle sales remained on the up by 20.5%, from 10 827 to 13 048.
In a repeat from last month, medium and heavy-duty commercial vehicles showed a decrease and an increase respectively, though by the slightest of margins in the case of the former.
Amassing 609 units, the medium segment shed a scant 0.4% from the 702 units sold last year, while the latter recorded an uptake of 1.3% from 1 967 to 1 992.
After three months of consecutive gains, new vehicle exports recorded November’s biggest loss, dropping 3.9% to 35 848 from 37 285 twelve months ago.
In total, dealer sales made up 79.6%, or 43 702 of the 54 896 vehicles sold, with the rest split as follows:
- Rental agencies: 16.3%
- Corporate fleets: 1.7%
- Government: 2.4%
Naamsa reaction
“South Africa’s macroeconomic landscape in November presented a rare alignment of positive shifts in inflation, fuel pricing, fiscal credibility, and monetary policy – each contributing to improved affordability and confidence across households and firms,” Naamsa said.
“Fuel prices fell sharply in November, [the] labour market data showed an improvement and the medium-term Budget Policy statement reinforced South Africa’s fiscal credibility by maintaining the primary surplus trajectory, endorsing the newly formalised three percent inflation target.
“This was followed by S&P Global’s sovereign credit rating upgrade, which lifted the foreign-currency rating to BB and the local-currency rating to BB+ – the first upgrade in almost two decades.
“The upgrade strengthens South Africa’s macro-economic positioning and improves the country’s funding outlook, which will, over time, support better credit conditions for consumers and businesses, including those financing new vehicle purchases,” Naamsa concluded.
Top 10 best-selling marques
The country’s best-selling brands, as well as their totals and market ranking from September, are:
- Toyota – 13 576 (-)
- Suzuki – 6 385 (-)
- Volkswagen – 6 044 (-)
- Ford – 3 095 (+1)
- Hyundai – 3 051 (-1)
- Great Wall Motors (GWM) – 2 534 (-)
- Chery – 2 506 (+1)
- Isuzu – 2 124 (-1)
- Kia – 1 828 (-)
- Renault – 1 415 (+1)
November top 50 best-sellers
- Toyota Hilux – 3 383
- Volkswagen Polo Vivo – 2 862
- Suzuki Swift – 2 364
- Ford Ranger – 2 292
- Chery Tiggo 4 Pro – 1 838
- Isuzu D-Max – 1 673
- Toyota Corolla Cross – 1 651
- Toyota Starlet – 1 619
- Hyundai Grand i10 – 1 486
- Toyota Urban Cruiser – 1 325
- Suzuki Fronx – 1 176
- GWM Haval Jolion – 1 132
- Toyota Starlet Cross – 1 085
- Toyota Vitz – 899
- Nissan Magnite – 815
- Kia Sonet – 778
- Omoda C5 – 777
- Toyota Fortuner – 763
- Mahindra Pik Up – 737
- Volkswagen Polo – 720
- GWM P Series – 665
- Toyota HiAce – 631
- Suzuki Baleno – 622
- Toyota Rumion – 577
- Renault Kwid – 570
- Volkswagen T-Cross – 568
- Jetour T2 – 545
- Nissan Navara – 511
- Mahindra XUV 3X0 – 506
- Chery Tiggo 7 – 488
- Kia Pegas – 476
- Suzuki Ertiga – 464
- Renalt Triber – 457
- Toyota Land Cruiser 70-series – 448
- Ford Territory – 414
- Volkswagen Amarok – 401
- Hyundai Exter – 370
- Jetour Dashing 366
- GWM Haval H6 – 364
- Suzuki S-Presso – 360
- Citroën C3 Aircross – 356
- Volkswagen Polo Sedan – 337
- Toyota Land Cruiser Prado – 335
- Citroën C3 – 334
- Renault Kiger – 327
- Hyundai Venue – 325
- MG ZS – 318
- Hyundai i20 – 312
- Kia Seltos – 287
- Jaecoo J5 – 287
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