South Africa September 2019: Suzuki (+37.2%) shines, VW T-Cross up to #13 in 5th straight market fall (-1%)

The VW T-Cross is already close to the South African Top 10.

The South African new vehicle market endures a 5th consecutive year-on-year drop but this time it is limited to a tiny -1% to 49.191 units, leading to a year-to-date volume down -3.5% to 398.341. In the carmakers ranking, Toyota (-3.7%) falls faster than the market but remains ultra-dominant at 24.2% share vs. 17.6% for the Volkswagen Group (+1%) with Nissan (-0.8%), Ford (-15.3%) and Hyundai-Kia (+0.7%) in tow. Suzuki (+37.2%) is the standout performer in the Top 10 and the only double-digit gainer in the Top 12. Newly launched Chinese fare Haval remains at $12, while further down Peugeot-Citroen (+78.9%), Mahindra (+34.2%) and Mitsubishi (+19.5%) make themselves noticed.

Model-wise, the Toyota Hilux (-13.5%) and VW Polo (-25.7%) remain on top despite sizeable losses, while the VW Polo Vivo (+28.5%) surges in third place ahead of the Ford Ranger (-23%) and Nissan NP200 (+19.2%). The Toyota Hiace remains at #6, the Toyota Corolla Quest is up 13 spots on August to #7, distancing the Isuzu D-Max, Ford Figo (+116.9%) and Renault Kwid (+18.3%). The Renault Sandero (+154.8%), Toyota RAV4 (+108.9%), Ford Ecosport (+50.3%), Suzuki Swift (+40.2%) and Datsun GO (+32.4%) also impress in the Top 25 while the VW T-Cross is up 110 spots on August to end its first full month of South African sales at a brilliant 13th place with 1.6% share.

Previous month: South Africa August 2019: Nissan NP200 (+40.8%), Renault Kwid (+43.2%) defy 4th straight market drop (-5.1%)

One year ago: South Africa September 2018: Toyota, Suzuki strong, market down -1.9%

Full September 2019 Top 37 All-carmakers and Top 252 All-models below.