Australia’s love affair with Toyota continues
Now having outsold its competition for 13 years, Toyota must be doing something right.
The monthly VFACTs car sales figures reveal an unswerving trend; every month, without fail, Toyota ranks as the most popular car brand in Australia. According to census figures published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), 2018 marks the 13th year on the trot that Toyota has topped the list of registered passenger vehicles.
According to ABS Director of Transport and Tourism Justin Lokhorst "Toyota had over one million more registered passenger vehicles in 2018 than its closest rival, Holden".
Top five car brands in Australia in 2018
Holden held onto the second spot, with an impressive 1.8 million new car registrations this year, but the order sheets are slowly declining for the General Motors-owned importer. ABS figures revealed Holden’s sales have been steadily slipping since 2008, with a substantial 3.9% decrease in the last year alone.
Ford’s passenger vehicles arm clinched the third spot, with 1.2 million passenger cars sold this year, but it, too, saw a reduction in sales numbers by 5.4%. Concerningly for Ford, the ABS report states sales have been diminishing for the automotive giant since the turn of the century.
Closing out the top five carmakers are Mazda and Hyundai, moving 1.2 million and 1.1 million cars respectively. Unlike Holden and Ford though, the Japanese and Korean automotive companies are experiencing strong sales and growth. Mazda alone has increased its market share by 38% in the last five years, and Hyundai a comparable 34.5% over that period.
National vehicle fleet increases
So far this year, the national fleet of vehicles has expanded by 2.1%, meaning there are now 19.2 million road-vehicles in use throughout the country. Diesel vehicles, in particular, claimed some of the most sizeable gains, with 1.5 million more oil burners on the road now than in 2013. Petrol-powered models also contributed to the expanding fleet, albeit in a small way, with a 0.6% boost from 2017 to 2018. Overall, new car buyers seem to be favouring other fuel options.
The ABS report also depicts a wane in popularity for LPG and dual fuel cars, with 161,191 wiped from the boards since 2013. Electric cars are off to a modest but steady start, now totalling 8,334.
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