Australians bought almost 110,000 new cars last month, setting a new record for August.
The result is good news for new-car buyers, as it means that supply problems – which have led to inflated prices and long waits for delivery – are starting to ease.
Utes led the sales surge. Toyota’s HiLux was the top seller, followed by the Ford Ranger.
Here’s what’s hot and what’s not in the new-car market.
HOT
UTES
The new Ford Ranger is putting the heat on Toyota’s HiLux as the pair battle it out for the title of top dog in the new-car market.
The Toyota, which has been the number one selling vehicle in the country for seven striaght years, outsold the Ford by the barest of margins – a mere two sales – to maintain an overall lead of less than 1000 units this year.
The Ford, however, remains the most popular 4WD ute.
Isuzu’s D-Max ute finished fourth overall on the sales charts, while Aussies continue to embrace expensive and thirsty US-style pick-up trucks. Sales of pick-ups costing more than $100,000 have grown by 47 per cent this year.
CHINESE CARS
As mainstream brands have been ratcheting up prices and removing cheaper models from their ranges, Chinese carmakers have been taking up the slack at the value end of the market.
Sales of Chinese cars are up almost 90 per cent this year, with MG leading the way.
There are now six Chinese brands in the market. Newcomers Chery and BYD are attracting a healthy share of buyers, while Great Wall Motors sales are up 86 per cent.
ELECTRIC VEHICLES
While large numbers of buyers still big diesel utes, more and more Australians are embracing electric vehicles and hybrids.
We bought 56,922 electric cars in the first eight months of the year, up from just 14,524 in the same period last year.
Tesla continues to lead the way with more than 32,000 sales, but BYD, MG and Polestar are growing more popular.
EVs made up 6.4 per cent of the total market, while hybrids accounted for 10.5 per cent of sales.
NOT
LUXURY BRANDS
Are interest rates starting to bite at the big end of town? The big luxury car brands struggled to attract buyers last month. Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz all recorded lower sales than last August, although for Audi it was a blip on an otherwise successful 2023.
Mercedes-Benz, which has just won a court case brought by disgruntled dealers, continued to do it tough. Sales were down 10 per cent last month and 13 per cent for the year.
BMW sales were down 5 per cent and the brand’s growth continues to lag behind the overall market.
KOREAN CARS
Sister brands Hyundai and Kia have established themselves as firm favourites with buyers over the past decade, but both are treading water in a market that is moving forward.
Last year, China overtook Korea as our third largest vehicle importer and that trend doesn’t appear to be changing.
While the overall market is up by close to 10 per cent this year, Kia and Hyundai are in negative territory.
MITSUBISHI
It’s not so squeezy in Mitsubishi dealerships these days, as customers appear to have forgotten the brand.
Sales are down by more than a quarter as buyers turn their noses up at a model range that is decidedly long in the tooth.
While alliance partner Nissan bathes in the warm glow of a refreshed model range and renewed buyer interest, Mitsubishi is struggling to puts bums on seats.
Executives will be counting down the days until the arrival of a new Triton ute in February next year.