New Caledonia (France) March 2022: Toyota Hilux #1 again, Chinese up to 11.1% share

The Geely GX3 breaks into the New Caledonia Top 20 in March.

New car sales in New Caledonia, a French overseas archipelago located north-east of Australia shoot up  55.2% year-on-year in March to 784 units on a low comparison base in 2021 when a 3-week Covid-19 lockdown was imposed. The Q1 2022 volume now stands at 1,992, up 27.1% over the same period last year. Toyota (+8.5%) remains ultra dominant even though it trails the market by a significant margin, selling more than double any other manufacturer. The next five carmakers all double their sales or more. Dacia (+112.1%) remains in 2nd place with 8.9% share, ex-aequo with Ford (+180%) up from #11 last month. Renault (+305.9%), Kia (+113.3%) and Citroen (+400%) are in tow while Nissan (+80%) and Suzuki (+166.7%) also beat the market in the remainder of the Top 10. Below, FAW (+228.6%) climbs four ranks to #11, with Subaru (+100%), MG (+180%), Changan (+333.3%) and Dongfeng (+100%) also impressive. Chinese carmakers add up to 11.1% of the market this month vs. 8.6% year-to-date.

Model-wise, the podium is unchanged on last month with the Toyota Hilux (+35.2%), Dacia Duster (+231.6%) and the new Renault Kwid in the lead. The Ford Ranger (+250%) is back up 10 spots on February to #4 vs. #7 over Q1 2022, the Kia 2700 (+225%) is up 13 ranks to #5, the Toyota Land Cruiser (+257.1%) is up from outside the February Top 25 directly to #6, the FAW Bestune X40 (+185.7%) is up 13 spots to #7 and the Ford Puma (+240%) is up to #8. The Kia Sorento (#12), Nissan Juke (#130 and Dongfeng Joyear X5 (#14) also shine. Finally, notice the Geely GX3 breaking into the Top 20 for the first time at #20.

Previous month: New Caledonia (France) January-February 2022: Toyota ultra dominant

One year ago: New Caledonia (France) March 2021: Toyota Hilux, Yaris and Peugeot 2008 top market down -6.1%

Full March 2022 Top 40 All-brands and Top 20 modes below.