Biggest used imports for 13 years

A massive 14,474 imported used cars were sold last month, the third-highest number ever, behind July 2003, with 14,709 sales, and March 2004, which recorded 14,877 sales. Registrations of imported used cars last month were 19.1 per cent higher than March last year, which had 12,153 sales, and 18.1 per cent ahead of February this year, which had 12,260. Toyota topped passenger sales yet again, with 3,722 units sold in March, a 27.9 per cent increase on the same time last year, when 2,910 vehicles were sold, and a 22.5 per cent increase on February, which had 2,760 sales. Toyota holds a 25.6 per cent market share of the year to date. Nissan followed, with 2,543 new registrations, a 13.5 per cent increase in sales compared to March last year, when 2,240 vehicles were sold. The market share holds steady at 17.7 per cent. In third, Mazda recorded a massive 39.6 per cent increase in March sales, up to 2,508 units. 1,796 units were sold in the same period last year. Hatchbacks continue to be the used vehicle of choice for New Zealand drivers, taking out the top five positions. The highest-selling used car was the Suzuki Swift, with 616 sales in March 2017, up 13.2 per cent on the previous year. The Mazda Axela came second, with 593 sales, a 21.8 per cent increase. In third was the Nissan Tiida, the number-one selling car of March 2016, with sales falling six per cent to 575 units. In the hybrid market, sales of the Toyota Prius jumped over 101 per cent to 389 units, making it the sixth-highest selling vehicle in March 2017.