March 2018’s aggregate new vehicle sales in South Africa came in at 49 233 units or an increase of 1,1% year-on-year, according to Naamsa.
As always, it’s interesting to take a look at what’s happening in terms of individual model sales. We’ve already examined the figures and picked out the 10 best-selling bakkies for the month (as well as the 12 worst-selling passenger vehicles), and now it’s time to do the same with the passenger vehicle market.
Interestingly, BMW recently opted to resume the release of its individual model sales figures, while certain other automakers – most notably German rival Mercedes-Benz – still disclose only aggregate sales statistics. Kia and Hyundai also thankfully started releasing their individual model sales figures a few months ago, which makes the picture a little clearer.
So, what happened in the third month of 2018? Well, the latest Volkswagen Polo Vivo climbed up one to grab top spot, effectively swapping places with the new Polo. The Toyota Fortuner enjoyed a particularly strong month, moving up two spots to third and forcing Toyota’s combination of the Corolla, Auris and Corolla Quest (the brand reports an overall figure rather than individual model sales) down one to fourth.
The Hyundai Grand i10 also dropped one place to fifth, while the Renault Kwid – no doubt bolstered by the recent addition of an automated manual derivative to the local range – returned to the table to grab sixth.
The Ford EcoSport held steady in seventh, while the Kia Picanto climbed one spot to eighth. The Toyota Etios fell three to ninth, while the Toyota Yaris – now sourced from Thailand rather than Europe – grabbed the final spot on the table, with an impressive showing of 664 units (following its strong debut with 557 units in February).
Other bits and bobs
So, what other interesting titbits can we share? Predictably, BMW’s strongest performer in March was the 3 Series (506), followed by the X1 (224) and X5 (171). The new X2, meanwhile, contributed 52 units to the Munich-based brand’s cause. And Alfa Romeo? Well, the Italian automaker moved just two examples each of its Giulia and 4C and four of its Stelvio and Giulietta.
The Everest (559) came close to making the top ten, while the Fiesta added 477 units and the Figo 370 for Ford. The Mustang managed 56 units, while the Kuga improved to a total of 119 units. Honda’s top performer for the month was the BR-V (277), while the Jazz fell just a single unit short of 200.
The outgoing Hyundai i10 added 516 units to the already impressive tally served up by the Grand i10, while the Creta (413) managed to outsell the Tucson (400). The new Jaguar E-Pace (136) started strongly, while the Range Rover Sport (147) proved to be the British automaker’s best seller in March. Just two examples of the Jaguar XE, meanwhile, left dealer floors.
Kia registered 355 units of its Rio, while Mahindra’s top seller was its KUV100 (66). Mazda’s charge was again led by the CX-5 (378), while Mitsubishi sold 21 units of its Pajero and 24 of its Pajero Sport. The Datsun GO (610) only just missed out on a top ten spot, and Nissan enjoyed strong showings from the likes of the Qashqai (489), X-Trail (444), Almera (403) and Micra Active (396).
Opel sold a total of 255 units in March (with the Corsa leading the way with 128 units), while Peugeot and Subaru both again managed to crack three figures, with the 208 contributing 43 registrations for the French brand and the XV adding 40 for the Japanese automaker. Porsche’s most popular product was the 911 (47), while the Clio (422) and Sandero (294) starred for Renault.
Ferrari added three more units of its 812 Superfast to the seven registered in February, while the fresh-faced Ignis (290) outsold the outgoing Swift (279) to assume the role of Suzuki’s top seller (interestingly, the evergreen Jimny added a useful 115 units).
Lexus could sell just a single example each of its LC500, RC and LS, but the NX weighed in with 44 units. Toyota’s Avanza (425) continued its strong run, while the RAV4 added 463 units. The Land Cruiser 200 (136) and Prado (119) also enjoyed good showings, while the 86 could manage just one unit.
The A3 (279), A4 (110) and Q5 (103) performed the heavy lifting for Audi, while the Tiguan (525) and Golf (381) enjoyed solid months for the Volkswagen brand.
See the top ten table below (and have a look back at February 2018’s figures here):
South Africa’s 10 best-selling passengers cars of March 2018:
1. Volkswagen Polo Vivo – 2 736
2. Volkswagen Polo – 2 121
3. Toyota Fortuner – 1 274
4. Toyota Corolla/Auris/Quest – 1 189
5. Hyundai Grand i10 – 1 032
6. Renault Kwid – 856
7. Ford EcoSport – 813
8. Kia Picanto – 789
9. Toyota Etios – 696
10. Toyota Yaris – 664
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- 5 bakkies we think South Africa would go crazy for
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