[Oldsmobile stopped]

Australia October 2014: Ford Ranger inside Top 5 for the first time, outsells Ford’s entire passenger car line-up

Ford sales down -15% and the Falcon, one of the Top 2 best-sellers in the country from 1960 to 2005, hits another all-time low of 396 units in October (-61%) and will end 2014 outside the Top 50 for the first time ever. Even the Toyota Camry (-15%) is hit.

Model-wise, the Toyota Corolla may have taken a decisive advantage in the race for the title of most popular model in Australia in 2014, outselling the Mazda3 by 891 units and lifting its YTD advantage from just 23 sales at end-September to 914 now. The Ford Ranger, Australian-engineered but Thai-built, breaks into the Australian Top 5 for the first time ever at #5 with sales up 19% to 2,405 units and outsells Ford’s entire passenger car line-up (2,062).

Aussie car sales October
1 Toyota Corolla 3,819
2 Toyota Hilux 3,228
3 Mazda3 2,928
4 Hyundai i30
5 Ford Ranger 2,405 (Biggest upswing in top ten sales up +19%)
6 Holden Commodore 2,210
7 Toyota Camry 1,908
8 Mitsubishi Triton 1,787
9 VW Golf 1,782
10 Mazda CX-5 1,594
11 Toyota RAV4 1,582
12 Jeep Grand Cherokee 1,365
13 Hyundai i20 1,328
14 Hyundai ix35 1,273
15 Subaru Forester 1,266
16 Toyota Prado 1,218
17 Toyota Yaris 1,167
18 Subaru XV 1,149
19 Toyota Kluger 1,063
20 Ford Focus 940
21 Mercedes C Class 932
22 Mitsubishi ASX 851
23 Honda Jazz 830
24 Ford Territory 828
25 Toyota Land Cruiser 773
26 Mitsubishi Lancer 727
27 Nissan Qashqai 714
28 Toyota Hiace Van 507
29 Ford Kuga 488 0.5%
30 Hyundai Veloster 466
n/a Audi A3 461
n/a Ford Fiesta 427
n/a Toyota Aurion 405
n/a Ford Falcon 396
n/a Mazda6 387
n/a Hyundai iLoad 382
n/a Holden Commodore Ute 375
n/a Mercedes A Class 371
n/a Mercedes CLA 371
n/a BMW 3 Series 368
n/a BMW X5 366
n/a Audi Q5 347
n/a Toyota 86 330
n/a Mitsubishi Mirage 310
n/a Renault Trafic 301
n/a Ford Mondeo 299
n/a Mercedes M Class 280
n/a Fiat/Abarth 500 251
n/a Land Rover Discovery 225
n/a BMW X3 211
n/a Ford Ecosport 208
n/a Mercedes GLA 200
n/a Range Rover Evoque 198
n/a Ford Falcon Ute 186
n/a Audi Q3 175
n/a Lexus NX 174

Kinda very very sad seeing the Falcon drop to the foot of the Aussies sales charts from always being No2 in the charts as Ford pull the plug on Falcon production next month, Ford must looking in around now to see how many Falcons they put together with odd panel and parts inventory left lying around at Fords Aussie plant, one swan song must be a Ford Australia look in every nook and cranny for those parts, the Ford Falcon built with a few left overs parts, still outsold the hapless FWD Mondeo which has gotta carry the Ford big car torch in Australia with piss poor sales of just 229.
Looks like Aussie ex Ford buyers are switching to RWD Mercedes Benz on mass sales up +40%. Good to see RHD Jeep doing well sales up +31%, LHD Cadillac 0.

Aussie Top 14 brands October
1 Toyota 17,382 -4%
2 Hyundai 8,401 +3%
3 Holden 7,542 -28%
4 Mazda 6,880 -14%
5 Ford 6,337 -15%
6 Nissan 5,759 +9%
7 Mitsubishi 5,115 +1%
8 Volkswagen 4,764 +5.2%
9 Subaru 4,003 +40%
10 Mercedes 3,150 +39%
11 Jeep 2,628 +31%
12 Honda 2,626 +7%
13 Kia 2,113 -16%
14 BMW 1,907 +19%

Not a good month for Holden, sales down 28%, when you strip out the RWD Commodore sales Holden are gonna be sitting on 5,000 sales, with VW biting at their heels. It's gonna be just as sad to see though last few Commodores Aussie No1 built from the scraps and left over panels and bits to hobble the last few together like the Falcon. Aussie designed Ford Ranger now carries the weight of Ford Mo Co on its bed.

 

[richmond2000]

I wonder how much of the rangers sales is to MINES or private fleet as I thought the HiLux was so "big" because of mining CO's buying them

 

[Oldsmobile stopped]

I wonder how much of the rangers sales is to MINES or private fleet as I thought the HiLux was so "big" because of mining CO's buying them

I don't think all the ex Commodore/Falcon buyers have suddenly all become miners overnight.

This is what l always thought was a mining truck, maybe they fit giant beds on Rangers these days.

RWD BMW and RWD Mercedes Benz seem to be enjoying big upswings in urban areas like Sydney and Adelaide in Urban Areas without a Falcon option, whilst the hapless Mondeo sits at the bottom of the Aussie sales charts.

Most of the rest of rural Australia is very rugged terrain both the Commodore and Falcons were always purpose built tough for the very tough rough terrain of the of the local market, a Insignia and Mondeo would fall to bits not last very long. So l guess in more rural areas this explains why the Toyota Hilux & Ford Ranger that are built tough have now replacements in waiting have now started to climb to the tops of the Aussie sales charts as the very tough Falcon disappears next month the Ranger seem like the ideal next replacement, as a Mondeo would just fall to bits.

Jeep like the rugged tough built Ranger used to sit outside the top 20 now they are climbing the charts higher and higher with every new month.

 

[BlackGTP]

Has GM ever tried to sell the Silverado in Australia (or Ford with F Series)? I'd think there would be a market in Australia.

 

[RedHotMike]

Has GM ever tried to sell the Silverado in Australia (or Ford with F Series)? I'd think there would be a market in Australia.

Ford used to bring in the F250's up until about 10 years ago when they switched to LHD only production. Had the market to themselves and made a bomb. Holden tried to bring in the Suburban in the late 90's but they only sold a handful of them and it was discontinued after a couple of years. There is definitely a market here for a F250 sized pickup. Not huge but still worth doing with a fair $ to be had. It'd have to be TD or forget it.

 

[isszy]

Funnily enough a friend who works for a big electrical infrastructure contractor which bought Rangers is now evaluating Colordaos as they have had so many mechanical problems in the Rangers.

While tastes may change in the future, Aussies have never warmed to really big trucks. Ford used to assemble F100's in the 70's and 80's, and there are importers of both Ford and Chev trucks who convert to RHD, but a converted truck will run you $100K. Holden brought in Suburbans a few years ago and sold a couple of hundred over about 4 years. While Australia is a big country, the cities are not set up for big trucks. Car parks in shopping centres are often too small for even my Commodore.

The Ranger, Hilux and Colorado are all about the 'right' size for trucks here.

Edit - Mike posted just before me. He's right - there is a market but it would be hundreds per, year not top 10 contenders.

 

[Goob]

One of the bigger importers and converters is Performax, doing Cars and Trucks. Most sell for $US 90000-130000.
Popular are the 2014 Camaro, Mustang, F250 and Silverado.


I'm surprised the new Corolla sedan and hatch are outselling the Mazda 3 hatch (and sedan?). Is there supply issues for Mazda?

 

[Commode]

I'm surprised the new Corolla sedan and hatch are outselling the Mazda 3 hatch (and sedan?). Is there supply issues for Mazda?

I think you will find that the Mazda 3 thrashes the Corolla in private sales. The fleet sheep buy the Corolla. How anyone can buy the very bland Corolla over a Mazda 3 bemuses me.

It is also interesting how the identical under the skin and thousands of dollars cheaper Mazda BT50 does not come close to the Ford Ranger in sales. I know the front end design was polarising when it first came out but as time goes by I think it will age better than the conservative Ranger.

The Hilux is another mystery to me. Toyota people must walk around with Blinkers on. I know the Hilux used to be the bench mark but there are much better Utes out there now but Toyota buyers will just keep buying Toyotas even if every independent review out there puts the Toyota last.

 

[VS Ute 5Litre]

I cant believe people buy the Mazda 3 to be honest

I guess they buy into the "zoom zoom"" nonsense in the advertising

I mean WTF is "sports performance"

 

[RedHotMike]

best in class does not mean best sales in class what so ever. Best sales is all about buyer perception and how well it's marketed which often will start decades before the car is ever built. Take the Hilux - built the reputation of toughest thing going 20+ years ago. Now as long as they don't make a complete dud the marketing to keep that perception is relatively easy. As for Holden, I can think of a few models with such a good reputation - Large RWD sedans, wagons and LWB Luxo barges. As if GM would give away that sort of brand cachet.... Oh wait... they just have

 

[Ruperts Trooper]

The Ranger, Hilux and Colorado are all about the 'right' size for trucks here.

They're about the right size for UK as well, indeed the Ranger, Hilux and D-Max (aka Colorado) are sold here along with the Mitsubishi L200 - combining the RHD markets for UK and Australia makes it a market worth participating in - so where's GM?

 

[RedVee8]

Ford used to bring in the F250's up until about 10 years ago when they switched to LHD only production. Had the market to themselves and made a bomb. Holden tried to bring in the Suburban in the late 90's but they only sold a handful of them and it was discontinued after a couple of years. There is definitely a market here for a F250 sized pickup. Not huge but still worth doing with a fair $ to be had. It'd have to be TD or forget it.

In the 70s all NSW Ambulances were F100 based, and I think a lot of Paddywagons as well.
In the naughties, Holden did a batch or two of GMC Sierra 2500 diesels for the NSW Ambulance service. I heard that the Ambos hated them, much preferring the Merc Sprinter vans.

 

[from oz]

I cant believe people buy the Mazda 3 to be honest

I guess they buy into the "zoom zoom"" nonsense in the advertising

I mean WTF is "sports performance"

It's a good car. But it's also the product of a decade of a successful reinvention by Mazda. I think that Australia has always had a thing for Mazda but it went dormant with the brand's styling in the 90s.

Regardless, they're making their monies from the earlier success though I personally feel they've cut some corners in the finer details that people only see after living with the car. The initial test drive will leave you impressed. Particularly the SP range.

 

[from oz]

In the 70s all NSW Ambulances were F100 based, and I think a lot of Paddywagons as well.
In the naughties, Holden did a batch or two of GMC Sierra 2500 diesels for the NSW Ambulance service. I heard that the Ambos hated them, much preferring the Merc Sprinter vans.

I wonder what the reason was for dropping the LLWB Holden Ute from Ambo duties? I have no engineering background at all but I often wondered how the lengthened chassis held up.

 

[VS Ute 5Litre]

It's a good car. But it's also the product of a decade of a successful reinvention by Mazda. I think that Australia has always had a thing for Mazda but it went dormant with the brand's styling in the 90s.

Regardless, they're making their monies from the earlier success though I personally feel they've cut some corners in the finer details that people only see after living with the car. The initial test drive will leave you impressed. Particularly the SP range.

Initially impressed because it's all style and no substance

I know a few who have them and they don't go back for another - however they move on to other brands other than a Ford Holden or Toyota

Usually its a euro

 

[from oz]

Initially impressed because it's all style and no substance

I know a few who have them and they don't go back for another - however they move on to other brands other than a Ford Holden or Toyota

Usually its a euro

Again, that's not true. It's genuinely a good car, certainly one of the best in class but yes, probably not as stand out as the first gen Mazda3. I agree that Mazda's new competition is the Golf, A3, A class and 1 series. The Focus and Cruze aren't in the picture any more.

 

[RedVee8]

I wonder what the reason was for dropping the LLWB Holden Ute from Ambo duties? I have no engineering background at all but I often wondered how the lengthened chassis held up.

Still see a couple around. The XLWB prob isn't any longer than a VE ute, or a Crewman at any rate...
Makes the oldies look skinny though.

 

[Rick_VT]

Australia October 2014: Ford Ranger inside Top 5 for the first time, outsells Ford’s entire passenger car line-up

Ford sales down -15% and the Falcon, one of the Top 2 best-sellers in the country from 1960 to 2005, hits another all-time low of 396 units in October (-61%) and will end 2014 outside the Top 50 for the first time ever. Even the Toyota Camry (-15%) is hit.

Model-wise, the Toyota Corolla may have taken a decisive advantage in the race for the title of most popular model in Australia in 2014, outselling the Mazda3 by 891 units and lifting its YTD advantage from just 23 sales at end-September to 914 now. The Ford Ranger, Australian-engineered but Thai-built, breaks into the Australian Top 5 for the first time ever at #5 with sales up 19% to 2,405 units and outsells Ford’s entire passenger car line-up (2,062).

Aussie car sales October
1 Toyota Corolla 3,819
2 Toyota Hilux 3,228
3 Mazda3 2,928
4 Hyundai i30
5 Ford Ranger 2,405 (Biggest upswing in top ten sales up +19%)
6 Holden Commodore 2,210
7 Toyota Camry 1,908
8 Mitsubishi Triton 1,787
9 VW Golf 1,782
10 Mazda CX-5 1,594
11 Toyota RAV4 1,582
12 Jeep Grand Cherokee 1,365
13 Hyundai i20 1,328
14 Hyundai ix35 1,273
15 Subaru Forester 1,266
16 Toyota Prado 1,218
17 Toyota Yaris 1,167
18 Subaru XV 1,149
19 Toyota Kluger 1,063
20 Ford Focus 940
21 Mercedes C Class 932
22 Mitsubishi ASX 851
23 Honda Jazz 830
24 Ford Territory 828
25 Toyota Land Cruiser 773
26 Mitsubishi Lancer 727
27 Nissan Qashqai 714
28 Toyota Hiace Van 507
29 Ford Kuga 488 0.5%
30 Hyundai Veloster 466
n/a Audi A3 461
n/a Ford Fiesta 427
n/a Toyota Aurion 405
n/a Ford Falcon 396
n/a Mazda6 387
n/a Hyundai iLoad 382
n/a Holden Commodore Ute 375
n/a Mercedes A Class 371
n/a Mercedes CLA 371
n/a BMW 3 Series 368
n/a BMW X5 366
n/a Audi Q5 347
n/a Toyota 86 330
n/a Mitsubishi Mirage 310
n/a Renault Trafic 301
n/a Ford Mondeo 299
n/a Mercedes M Class 280
n/a Fiat/Abarth 500 251
n/a Land Rover Discovery 225
n/a BMW X3 211
n/a Ford Ecosport 208
n/a Mercedes GLA 200
n/a Range Rover Evoque 198
n/a Ford Falcon Ute 186
n/a Audi Q3 175
n/a Lexus NX 174

Wheres the Holden Cruze?

 

[AceRimmer]

Wheres the Holden Cruze?

Good question. The best info I can find is via goauto.com.au which states:

For General Motors’ Australian subsidiary, the result reflected negative returns from a number of its key models, including its locally built Commodore – down 33.3 per cent (to 2210 units) and unable to match last October’s best sales month for the VF Commodore since the model arrived in June 2013 – and the Holden Ute (-39.0 per cent), Cruze (-30.1 per cent) and Caprice (-50.8 per cent) assembled alongside the Commodore in Adelaide.

The imported Barina, Barina Spark, Captiva 7, Colorado 7 SUV and Malibu were all down between 38.9 and 54.1 per cent, leaving only the Trax crossover and Colorado utility in the black.

 

[BBDOS CV8]

Again, that's not true. It's genuinely a good car, certainly one of the best in class but yes, probably not as stand out as the first gen Mazda3. I agree that Mazda's new competition is the Golf, A3, A class and 1 series. The Focus and Cruze aren't in the picture any more.

The Mazda 3 is not a competitor with any of those you nominated, except maybe the base, loss-leader $19,990 Golf. It's like the Hyundai I30 - I had the 'pleasure' of driving an Elite as a hire car recently in Unzud. It's a lot of car for the money - but it's not very much money, so it's still not that much car. So you get a good deal on a decent car with good features and 5-star ANCAP. But it isn't anything that will enthuse you. Unlike the European cars, which not only give you all that, but also include a bit of brio, zest in driving. Which not all people want - pays your money, takes your choice.

3's a worthy Japanese car in the old mien of offering moderate performance at moderate price with moderate service life looked after moderately. It is a far, far better car than the Corolla - but that isn't saying much, a CD Cruze kicks the Corolla all over the shop for anything except fuel economy. The biggest selling 3 by far is the base and it's a loss-leader. The Luxury model tries to muscle in on Audi territory, like the Focus Titanium, but they can't hide their low-rent roots unlike the A3, which does a good job of convincing you it's not a Golf underneath.

Resale on 3's, for all the hoo-haa about private sales is not flash- I kjnow someone who just picked up a 2011-plate, 2-year old Luxury for $15K with 50,000km. It's in mint condition with a complete service history and no issues. New, they were near $40K. Owner was offered $14K as a trade-in but changeover at full retail(!) and not advertised EOFY pricing for which you needed - no tradein. Someone else I know has a superceded red Neo, 4 years old with low km (<40,000k), immaculate, serviced - offered $12K tradein on a 6.

Yes - the SPs are fast in a straight line - but fragile and things like brakes wear fast if given a thrashing because they are standard Mazda brakes; if you actually drive one like you can push a BMW M-sport especially but even a GTI or A3 you will scare yourself. SP/= Euro sports trims. Not exotic prices or performance.

All the cars in the entry class sell on primarily price/features/deal, because on a short test drive the average person typically buying their first new car is not discerning enough to pick between them. So whichever dealer throws in the (almost no cost) sweetener like monogrammed floormats or gives $500 off and cuts their margin to nix/is desparate enough to hope they'll make money on aftersales will get the business. No-one ever got fired for buying IBM - there is a perception no-one ever lost on a 3 or Corolla. Not especially true.