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Aussie favourite in decline

Big discounts and incentives have failed to boost Australia's struggling new car market.
Posted on 06 May, 2019
Aussie favourite in decline

Australia's Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) has reported sales of 75,550 new vehicles during the month of April 2019. This represents a decrease of about nine per cent on the same period in 2018. 

The passenger vehicle market reported a decrease during April, with a whopping drop of 17 per cent for the year, compared to the first five months of 2018. Even sales of SUVs and utes have dropped - down 4.6 per cent and 1 per cent respectively.

Big discounts during the end of the Japanese financial year (on March 31) couldn't pull some of the country's most popular brands out of stagnation.

Toyota's sales were down nine per cent in April or more than six per cent for the year. Mazda fared better thanks to the arrival of the new Mazda3 hatch, though sales were still down one per cent for April and four per cent for the year.

Holden is having a tough year with sales down by 24 per cent. Holden's Commodore logged just 629 sales in April, a far cry from circa-2000 monthly sales just three years ago. In that same period, Holden's market share has shrunk from 7.8 per cent to just 4.4 per cent.

Ford is having a rough time, down more than nine per cent for the year. The Blue Oval is reliant on sales of the Ford Ranger - its next best seller, the niche Mustang sports car, selling about 400 last month.

Mitsubishi basks in the sole bright spot in the new car market. Sales have increased by more than 12 per cent for the year, even after a slump in April of 14 per cent on the same month last year.

Luxury badges are on the nose in Australia, too, with Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz sales declining in 2019. 

Tony Weber, chief executive of the FCAI, cites economic and environmental factors as causing the downturn.

"The results for April are in line with trends for year-to-date 2019," says Weber, putting the decrease at about eight per cent.

"This decrease is the result of a number of factors in the Australian market, including the downturn in the housing market, the tightening of lending practices, environmental factors such as drought and flood, and, of course, the imminent Federal Government election.

"With all these elements currently present in the market, it is no surprise that Australian consumers are conservative in their approach to major purchases at the moment."

Once again, utes topped the sales charts in April - the Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger. The Mitsubishi Triton went from number three in March to 14th spot in April with 1,162 sold. Behind the two workhorses, the usual players made up the top 10.

Top 10 cars in April

Toyota Hilux - 3621

Ford Ranger - 3011

Toyota Corolla - 2429

Mazda3 - 2195

Hyundai i30 - 1910

Mazda CX-5 - 1827

Kia Cerato - 1650

Toyota Prado - 1473

Hyundai Tucson - 1355

Toyota Camry - 1274

Top 10 makes in April

Toyota - 15,135

Mazda - 7644

Hyundai - 6469

Ford - 4803

Mitsubishi - 4717

Kia - 4521

VW - 3505

Holden - 3483

Nissan - 3025

Subaru - 3006