Australian & New Zealand May 2008 Sales Results: Holden Commodore Back At No.1

[JoeT]

Australian May 2008 Sales Results

Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries
4 June 2008
www.fcai.com.au

Fuel prices driving motorists to car showrooms.

FCAI Chief Executive Andrew McKellar said new motor vehicle sales were relatively strong in May, despite the impact of rising fuel prices and interest rates.

Australian new motor vehicle sales remained strong last month, despite higher interest rates and fuel prices.

Official VFACTS figures released today by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) show that 88,640 cars, trucks and buses were sold in May – an increase of 43 vehicles on the same month last year.

"This is a good result for the automotive industry, although there is evidence that interest rate rises and other factors have slowed the rate of growth in recent months," FCAI Chief Executive Andrew McKellar said.

Year-to-date the car market is now up 4 per cent on the same period in 2007, which was an all-time record year.

The May figures reveal a 'two-phase' car market, with the passenger car market down slightly (2.5 per cent) while the SUV and light commercial markets continue to boom.

Sales in the medium SUV segment were up 16.8 per cent on May 2007 and the large SUV segment was up 12 per cent, despite the impact of higher fuel costs.

The light commercial vehicle market also continues to be buoyant – with ute sales particularly strong.

The pick-up/cab-chassis 4x4 segment rose 5.7 per cent over May last year, while the van segment rose 22.5 per cent.

Mr McKellar said an increasing number of passenger vehicles and SUVs are being bought with clean-diesel engines.


"Several new common-rail injection clean diesels have entered the market in the past few months, and we can see that Australian drivers are keen to give the new technology a try," Mr McKellar said.

Vehicle buyers seeking improved fuel efficiency do not necessarily have to choose a smaller vehicle.

"The traditional image of diesel vehicles has changed, he said. Diesel vehicles can provide significant benefits in terms of fuel efficiency and reduced carbon emissions but have good power and performance."

Mr McKellar said higher fuel prices should not scare consumers away from traditional petrol engines either, because new technology has made these more efficient.

"Our analysis shows that higher fuel costs are prompting people to shop around to find a new car that both suits their needs and also has better fuel economy than the one they are currently driving," he said.

Toyota remained the top-selling marque in May with 23.4 per cent of the market, followed by Holden with 12.5 per cent and Ford with 10.9 per cent.

So far this year Toyota leads the sales race with 101,816 vehicles sold, followed by Holden with 55,155 and Ford with 44,183.


Top Australian Brands May 2008

Brand - Sales
1. Toyota - 20,754
2. Holden - 11,118
3. Ford - 9,650
4. Mazda – 6530
5. Mitsubishi – 5134
6. Nissan – 5073
7. Honda – 4503
8. Hyundai – 3912
9. Subaru – 3217
10. Volkswagen – 2812


Top Australian Vehicles May 2008

Vehicle - Sales
1. Holden Commodore - 4215
2. Toyota HiLux - 3914
3. Toyota Corolla - 3668
4. Ford Flacon - 3320
5. Mazda 3 - 2582

Toyota Yaris - 1987
Toyota Camry - 1933
Toyota Landcruiser - 1783
Honda Civic – 1634
Toyota Aurion - 1618
Hyundai Getz – 1568
Holden Rodeo - 1531
Mitsubishi Lancer - 1520
Holden Astra - 1487
Toyota Prado - 1435

Subaru Forester - 1423
Mitsubishi Triton - 1311
Ford Ranger - 1311
Ford Focus - 1302
Suzuki Swift – 1254
Ford Territory - 1254
Toyota Kluger - 1235
Toyota RAV4 - 1165
Holden Commodore Ute - 1112
Mazda 2 - 1080

Mazda BT-50 - 1049
Mazda 6 - 993
Holden Barina - 952
Holden Captiva - 918
Ford Falcon Ute - 915
Subaru Impreza - 788
Honda CR-V – 726
Mitsubishi Outlander - 658
Mercedes-Benz C-Class – 656
Ford Fiesta - 575

Ford Mondeo - 565
Subaru Liberty - 541
Mitsubishi Pajero - 516
Holden Viva - 434
Nissan Patrol Wagon – 434
Mitsubishi 380 - 418
Mazda CX-9 - 410
Toyota Prius - 373
BMW 3 Series – 367
Mazda CX-7 - 351

Lexus IS250 – 346
Mitsubishi Colt - 336
Subaru Outback - 320
Toyota Tarago - 229
Holden Caprice - 171
Chrysler 300C – 159
Holden Combo - 90
Holden Statesman - 86
Holden Astra Convertible - 77
Holden Epica - 43



New Zealand May 2008 Sales Results

Motor Industry Association New Zealand
4 June 2008
www.mia.org.nz

New vehicle market takes a breather at last.

After a solid period of growth lasting the best part of seven years, the new vehicle industry took a breather in the month of May. Although May new car sales of 5627 were slightly up on April’s figure, the month of May was 11.3% down on last May’s 17 year record. New commercial vehicle sales, at 2002, were marginally down on both April 2008 and May 2007. Year to date May, total new vehicle sales were 3.5% up on the same period last year.

“If May’s trend continues into the coming months we may at last be seeing the new vehicle market entering a consolidation phase after a prolonged period of growth,” said Perry Kerr, CEO of the Motor Industry Association. ”This is not entirely unexpected, as the slowing economy has affected virtually every other business sector. There is however, very strong demand for small new cars in particular, and we still expect the full year to yield a similar new vehicle market to that of 2007.”

Toyota continues to lead the new vehicle market, but there is a close battle between Ford and Holden for second place. Corolla continues to edge out Commodore for the position of top selling car model.


Top New Zealand Brands May 2008

Brand - Sales
1. Toyota - 1195
2. Ford - 940
3. Holden - 793
4. Mazda - 596
5. Nissan - 553
6. Mitsubishi - 509
7. Suzuki - 504
8. Honda - 421
9. Hyundai - 398
10. Volkswagen - 177

11. Kia - 140
12. Subaru - 113
13. Daihatsu - 112
14. Mercedes Benz - 111
15. Audi - 100
16. Skoda - 92
17= BMW - 80
17= Peugeot - 80
19. Fiat - 56
20. Chrysler - 50


Top New Zealand Vehicles May 2008

Vehicle - Sales
1. Holden Commodore - 288
2. Suzuki Swift - 285
3. Toyota Corolla - 234
4. Ford Focus - 206
5. Mazda 6 - 190
6. Toyota Yaris - 179
7. Ford Territory - 163
8. Ford Mondeo - 142
9. Mazda 3 - 139
10. Honda Jazz - 136

Australian & New Zealand April 2008 Sales Results

[JoeT]

Holden Commodore Back On Top Of The Sales Charts In May

Josh Gliddon
4 June 2008
www.drive.com.au

The Commodore was Australia's best selling car in May, but still trails the Toyota Corolla in the annual sales race.

The Holden Commodore was Australia's best selling car in May, wresting back the mantle from last month’s number one, Toyota’s HiLux utility.

But Australia's most popular car for the past decade still trails the Toyota Corolla in the yearly sales race by 343 sales.

Holden spokesman John Lindsay claims the Holden result is impressive, given the fact it was achieved without the Commodore wagon.

“We have also achieved it against the backdrop of the launch of a new competitor (the new FG Falcon) into the market.”

But the news is not all good for Holden. Commodore sales are still down by 22 per cent year-to-date, while the maker's mid-sized sedan, the Epica, managed just 43 sales.

Holden sold 4215 Commodores in May, versus 3914 Toyota HiLux sales and 3668 Corollas. Ford sold 3320 Falcons in May. That result included one week of new FG Falcon sales.

Click here to continue article

Year-on-year performance by marque:

Toyota ▲ 20,754
Holden ▼ 11,118
Ford ▲ 9650
Mazda ▲ 6530
Mitsubishi ▼ 5134
Nissan ▼ 5073
Honda ▼ 4503
Hyundai ▼ 3912
Subaru ▲ 3217
Volkswagen ▲ 2812
Suzuki ▲ 2287
Kia ▲ 1770
Mercedes-Benz ▲ 1695
BMW ▲ 1553
Audi ▲ 824
Lexus ▼ 647
Peugeot ▼ 602
Jeep ▲ 536
Volvo Car ▼ 467
Land Rover ▲ 367
Chrysler ▲ 352
Citroen ▼ 251
Renault ▼ 232
Fiat ▲ 226
MINI ▼ 206
Dodge ▲ 182
Proton ▼ 157
Porsche ▼ 126
Ssangyong ▼ 123
Saab ▼ 122
Alfa Romeo ▼ 115
Jaguar ▲ 96
Hummer ▲ 85
Skoda ▲ 59
Maserati ▲ 21
Smart ▼ 18
Ferrari ▲ 15
Bentley ● 11
Aston Martin ▼ 7
Lotus ▼ 6
Lamborghini ▼ 4

[ford&holden]

Ford is starting to catch Holden.
Mondeo appears to be doing nicely, who would have thought...
Toyota is still dominating

[Ssom]

Top 20 NZ brands
1. Toyota- 1195 ▼
2. Ford - 940 ▼
3. Holden - 793 ▼
4. Mazda- 596 ▲
5. Nissan- 553 ▼
6. Mitsubishi- 509 ▲
7. Suzuki- 504 ▲
8. Honda- 421 ▼
9. Hyundai- 398 ▲
10. Volkswagen- 177 ▼
11. Kia- 140 ▼
12. Subaru- 113 ▼
13. Daihatsu- 112 ▲
14. Mercedes Benz- 111 ▲
15. Audi- 100 ▼
16. Skoda- 92 ▲
17= BMW- 80 ▼
17= Peugeot- 80 ▼
19. FIAT- 56 ▲
20. Chrysler- 50 ▼
21. Lexus- 41 ▼
22. Land Rover- 32 ▼
23. Jeep- 31 ▼
24. Citroen- 24 ▼
25= Jaguar- 20 ▲
25= Ssangyong- 20 ●
27. MINI- 18 ▼
28= Alfa Romeo- 15 ▼
28= Volvo- 15 ▼
30. Dodge- 10 ▼
31. Porsche- 8 ▼
32. Saab- 6 ▲
33. Renault- 5 ▼
34. Ferrari- 4 ▲
35. Maserati- 3 ▼
36. Aston Martin- 2 ▼

Don't know which model placed where as Scoop didn't attach a spreadsheet to their article like they normally do...


Though 43 sales for the Epica, wow I don't even think the Vectra did that bad.

[BBDOS CV8]

Holden's figures are going to ebb and flow due to factors like they shipped 12,000 cars to the US in three shipments in the last four months - obviously that has to affect availability of some models. Plus they haven't had a wagon to sell apart from itinerant dealer stock all this year.

The same basic car is still going strong without any major updates two years after intro. That's pretty good especially in the current environment.

[Odin]

pfft while its a good result for Commodore, it's market position is crap, like has been said, ford is catching up. Still can't understand hilux's strong sales.

[BBDOS CV8]

Originally Posted by Odin

pfft while its a good result for Commodore, it's market position is crap, like has been said, ford is catching up. Still can't understand hilux's strong sales.

How so? Ford been giving superceded Falcons away and you fully expect them to get a bounce from a new model with pent-up demand for the FG. Even though there is some issue holding up deliveries of turbo models. If it's still selling 3-4K in a few months time it'll be a success.

Hilux is selling so well because thanks to the Australia-Thai FTA (thanks little bloody Johhny - can't remember voting for that one) it is seriously cheap at $27K for a petrol V6. Farmers are probably buying spares while they're cheap and because the drought has seemingly broken and so are miners, as exports and minerals are still booming.

[paul8488]

Holden should be very scared of the new Falcon. Only one week of the month was the new model and it's less than 1000 units off the Commodores pace. If the Commodore sinks, Holden is in big trouble.

Though I like the Epica personally, what what a dud! They totally misread the Australian market on that car. I doubt those 43 were enough to pay their shipping costs for the month. Whoever made that call needs the boot. The Barina and Captiva and Viva are disappointing, but the Epica is an out and out disaster.

[Baz]

Epica should be replaced by the Opel Insignia. Be a good rival to the Mondeo

[mikmak]

I'm still absolutely baffled that the ute with the lowest towing capacity in its class, is the 2nd best seller in the entire country!

Still, look at that top ten!

[Ssom]

Far as I'm concerned, the next generation Viva and Barina should be seen as GMDAT's last chance, either perform or it's back to Europe (Hell the Corsa could replace them both), it's not 1995 anymore and cheap driveaway pricing clearly isn't bringing in buyers, hence why I don't believe the Chinese will threaten the established players.


Though at the same time, an Opel plant in South Africa or Thailand could well be the answer to Holdens sub-Commodore problem.

[Odin]

Originally Posted by BBDOS CV8

How so? Ford been giving superceded Falcons away and you fully expect them to get a bounce from a new model with pent-up demand for the FG. Even though there is some issue holding up deliveries of turbo models. If it's still selling 3-4K in a few months time it'll be a success.

Hilux is selling so well because thanks to the Australia-Thai FTA (thanks little bloody Johhny - can't remember voting for that one) it is seriously cheap at $27K for a petrol V6. Farmers are probably buying spares while they're cheap and because the drought has seemingly broken and so are miners, as exports and minerals are still booming.

No I mean the commodores sales are ok, I meant holdens position in the market is stagnating, distant 2nd. And If the Hilux is made in Thailand, I don't understand why the rodeo isn't anywhere near it as it's made in Thailand as well isn't it?

Soon enough any name recognition will go though with it being renamed to the colorado, due to the isuzu thing, wouldn't be suprised if sales drop further after the relaunch.

[Aych Es Vee]

I expect to see Ford sales rise significantly once Falcon sales start rolling.

[from oz]

There is one reason why the Hilux went to number 1... Qld/WA mining boom. Vehicle spending from the mining companies were up significantly over the last 6 mths.

[derrado]

I think the last reasonably-selling Holden mid-sizer was the Camira, and if I recall correctly its sales dropped off toward the end.

The Apollo was a non-entity; the Vectra was never at the top of the sales pack and towards the end could barely shift. Now, the Epica (a car of which I am not a fan, at all) has lost its wheels. 43? It was released earlier than the Mondeo, has a lower price, also has a well-priced large car in the showroom (Commodore v Falcon), and has seen some advertising.

43 is terrible, and the car deserves it. It is mediocre in every way and looks dull and aged. Holden should never have brought over this rehashed Daewoo but I doubt it's costing them much. Of course, the alternative was the pricey Vectra but seeing how the Mondeo is (almost unusually) competitively priced and selling quite well, I'm sure they can do the same with the Insignia.

Good riddance, Epica.