Solomon Islands Full Year 2014: Toyota and Isuzu in the lead

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in Solomon Islands – September 2012.

* See the Top 7 All-brands and Top 6 All-Toyota models by clicking on the title *

Solomon Islands is located east of Papua New Guinea and composed of a multitude of islands with the distance between the westernmost and easternmost islands being about 1.500 km (930 mi). Solomon Islands gained independence in 1978, is home to 523.000 inhabitants and has sometimes been described as an ‘unformed state’. An interesting element that impacts the Solomon Islands new car market is its political decision of giving diplomatic recognition to the Republic of China (Taiwan) as the sole-legitimate government of all of China – in turn giving Taiwan vital votes in the United Nations. According to Wikipedia, lucrative investments, political funding and preferential loans from both the Republic of China and the People’s Republic of China have increasingly impacted the political landscape of Solomon Islands. As a result, whereas it doesn’t appear in any of the other South Pacific Islands rankings except French New Caledonia and Tahiti, Chinese manufacturer Great Wall ranks 5th in Solomon Islands with 6.7% market share in 2014.

Solomon Islands location

Toyota Hilux in Solomon Islands

Street scene in Honiara – Solomon Islands

The overall market, amounting to 433 new sales in 2014, is dominated by Toyota (33.5% share, Isuzu (23.6%) and Nissan (20.8%). However in the case of Isuzu, judging by recent videos of the streets of the capital Honiara, these sales figures are primarily achieved thanks to a string of medium and heavy commercial vehicles. One of them is pictured atop this article, ornamented with a traditional Tomoko canoe for the visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in September 2012. As a result, the Toyota Hilux is crowned best-seller in Solomon Islands for 2014 with a commanding 16.5% share, with the Land Cruiser 70 following.

Full Year 2014 Top 7 All-brands and Top 6 All-Toyota models below.