Australia November 2015: Nissan shines in strongest November ever

The Nissan X-Trail is the best-selling SUV in Australia for the first time. Picture caradvice.com.au

* UPDATED with the Top 50 brands and Top 290 All-models *

The Australian new vehicle market is going from strength to strength this year with November sales figures hitting an all-time high of 98.639 units, up 7% on November 2014 and eclipsing the previous record of 98.347 established in 2012. The year-to-date total now stands at 1.055.791 units, the highest 11 month-tally in Australian history, up 4% on the same period a year ago. What also puts a smile on analysts for Australia is the fact that these record levels are championed by private sales, outpacing the market at +10% year-on-year in November to 49.880 deliveries, with business fleet sales up 5% to 36.181, government sales up 9% to 3.694 and rental sales down 3% to 6.031.

Nissan Navara sales are up 117% this month. Picture caradvice.com.au

Diesel sales in Australia are in freefall at -25% to private buyers and -21% to fleets and only 4% of new passenger cars running on diesel this month. SUVs continue their unstoppable march to the top: up another 16% to 36.070 units at 36.6% market share vs. -3% and 41.726 passenger cars (42.3% share). Light commercials are up 16% to 17.990, pushed up by a series of new ute launches and the craze for 4WD utes being used as SUVs, not just workhorses. Brand-wise, Toyota remains ultra-dominant with sales up 15% to 18.402 followed by Mazda up a splendid 21% while Holden climbs back on the podium thanks to factory deals, up 13% to 8.889. This is however not enough to reclaim the #3 year-to-date spot off Hyundai at 93.805 (-5%) vs. 94.845 (+3%).

The Ford Ranger ranks at a record 4th place for the 2nd month running.

Nissan is the hero of the month with sales up 39% to push the manufacturer back inside the Australian Top 5 for the first time since March and only the second time in the past 33 months at 7.229 sales and 7.3% share vs. 5.8% year-to-date. This performance is mainly due to the success of two nameplates. Firstly, the NP300 Navara, bolstered by the new generation now in full gear, more than doubles its sales year-on-year at +117% to land in 8th position, its highest ranking since December 2013. Then the X-Trail is up a whopping 92% on November 2014 to hit an all-time high 9th place, only the second time ever this nameplate ranks within Australia’s Top 10 along with March 2012 (#10). This also means the X-Trail is the best-selling SUV in the country for the first time ever, outselling the perennial leader the Mazda CX-5 in November by 2.225 to 2.160. Other brand news include Kia up 36% and Jeep down 45%.

The Toyota Camry is the most popular local vehicle in Australia this month.

The Toyota Corolla is the best-selling vehicle in Australia for the 6th time this year with sales up 5% to 3.430, securing a third consecutive annual win with a now insurmountable advantage over the #2 the Mazda3 at 38.604 deliveries in 11 months vs. 35.199. The Toyota Hilux is up 15% thanks to the new model in 2nd place with 3.369 units – 75% of which are 4WD variants – while the Ford Ranger manages to post a second consecutive month at a record #4 thanks to sales up a whopping 45% to 3.045 (80% 4WD). Thanks to deliveries up a spectacular 53% year-on-year, the Toyota Camry gains two spots on October to #5 and is now back above the Holden Commodore (#6, +19%) as the #1 locally-produced nameplate in Australia.

Mercedes GLC. Picture caradvice.com.au

Notice also the Hyundai Tucson already getting dangerously close to the Top 10 at 1.838 units (#11) and the Mazda CX-3 strong at 1.397 (#15). Further down, the Hyundai Accent remains well above its year-to-date level at #16 vs. #30, the Holden Trax jumps 17 spots on October to #33, the Mitsubishi Pajero is up 59 to #41, the Toyota Fortuner is up 15 to #62 for its second appearance in the Australian sales charts, the Ford Everest is up 13 to #69, the Land Rover Discovery Sport up 8 to #78 and the Mercedes GLE up 20 to break into the Top 100 for the first time at #88. Its compact sibling, the Mercedes GLC, for its part lands directly at a beautiful 73rd spot with 321 deliveries.

Previous month: Australia October 2015: New generation pushes Toyota Hilux to #1

One year ago: Australia November 2014: Hyundai climbs on year-to-date podium

Full November 2015 Top 50 brands and Top 290 All-models below.