January’s sales figures are in and with it is one of the most closely contested months between Chery and Haval, who were only separated by 38 aggregate local sales. 
Looking for a new or used Chery or Haval? Find it here with CARmag.
As a recap, Chery and Haval have for another consecutive month scored within the Top 10 sales spot, reaffirming their appeal to South African buyers in the market for value-for-money offerings. While the status quo of Toyota leading the pack hasn’t changed significantly, Suzuki also stole impressed by coming close to dethroning Volkswagen for the second podium spot signalling a massive increase in sales over the past several years.
Top 10 Local Automaker Sellers in January 2023
- Toyota – 10 855
- Volkswagen – 5 522
- Suzuki – 5 235
- Ford – 2420
- Nissan – 2 315
- Hyundai – 2 185
- Isuzu – 1 610
- Haval – 1 463
- Chery – 1 425
- Renault – 1 411
Looking further down, there are some closely contested battles with Ford and Nissan too however the two Chinese manufacturers of Chery and Haval are duking it out and have had one of their most closely contested months yet. While both Chinese automakers rank within the Top 10 list for total vehicle sales locally (across all markets), there is precarious competition in the last four spots with Kia missing a mention, coming in at 11th with 1 344 units sold in January.
Related: Living With It – Chery Tiggo 7 Pro Max
Regardless, buying appetites show that Haval has their SUVs serving as sales leaders with the Jolion and H6 leading the charge. Have a look at the breakdown below.
Haval’s Model Breakdown
- Jolion – 567
- H6 – 421
- GWM P-Series – 351
- GWM Steed – 104
- GWM Tank 300 – 15
- GWM Ora – 4
- H9 – 1
- H2 – 1
Related: Details Of Haval’s Second-Generation H9 Model Revealed
Unlike Haval Motors SA, which competes across the passenger and light commercial vehicle markets with several offerings, Chery features a far more condensed lineup of SUVs catering to different segments.
Chery’s Model Breakdown
- Tiggo 4 Pro – 914
- Tiggo 7 Pro – 330
- Tiggo 8 Pro – 181
With new models expected from both Chery and Haval in the next several months, do the Chinese automakers stand a chance of moving further up the list? Our speculation is that more entry-level and affordable models, catering to buyers willing to spend less than R250 000 would be the only viable option for gaining a larger aggregate market share.
