An upsurge in demand for rentals on the eve of the Cricket World Cup tournament helped push January new-vehicle registrations to 11,667 units, the strongest January since records began in 1975.
Motor Industry Association (MIA) records show 9010 passenger cars and 2657 light commercials were registered last month, a significant 11 per cent, or 1139 vehicles, up on January 2014. Passenger cars were up 8.6 per cent and light commercials 19 per cent on the same month last year.
“New vehicle sales for 2015 have started where they left off in 2014, with the outlook for 2015 remaining very positive,” said David Crawford, the CEO of the MIA.
Of the 11,667 registrations, just on 2000 were rentals. MIA figures show Toyota sold 1192 rentals, Holden 544, Mazda 104, Ford 86, and Mitsubishi 40. Hyundai, the main vehicle sponsor for the New Zealand leg of the Cricket World Cup, registered 32.
Typically these vehicles will spend a few months in the hands of rental agencies before being sold into the used car market. Most will have no more than 45,000km on the clock.
Toyota was the overall market leader last month with registrations of 2409 units for a 21 per cent share, but Ford continued to lead light commercial sales, registering 504 units (19%) against Toyota’s 468 (18%).
Holden was second in overall sales with 1519 units (13%), followed by Ford with 1006 (9%) and Hyundai (813). Unusally, Ford didn’t have a model among the top 15 passenger cars, a segment led by the Toyota Corolla (792 sales, of which 582 were rentals), and Holden Commodore (445).
The Ford Ranger was the top-selling commercial model for January with 417 units (16%) followed by the Toyota Hilux with 324 (12%) and the Nissan Navara 254 (10%).
The sale of sports utility vehicles continues to grow, reflecting international trends, with a 32% market share for the month of January followed by small passenger cars on 19% and pick-ups/chassis-cabs with 16%.
Top 15 brands in January:
1.Toyota 2409; 2. Holden 1519; 3. Ford 1006; 4. Hyundai 813; 5. Mazda 807; 6. Nissan 782; 7. Mitsubishi 591; 8. Volkswagen 482; 9. Honda 356; 10. Suzuki 341; 11. Mercedes-Benz 222; 12. Kia 201; 13. Ssangyong 160; 14. BMW 149; 15. Audi 148.
Top 15 passenger cars in January:
Toyota Corolla 792; Holden Commodore 445; Toyota RAV4 436; Toyota Yaris 308; Mazda3 305; Holden Cruze 288; Hyundai IX35 230; Honda Jazz 221; Nissan Quashqai 196; Nissan X-Trail 182; Mazda CX-5 176; Mazda2 172; Hyundai Santa Fe 169; Mitsubishi ASX 168; Toyota Highlander 165.
Top 15 light commercials in January:
Ford Ranger 417; Toyota Hilux 324; Nissan Navara 254; Holden Colorado 225; Toyota Hiace 123; Isuzu D-Max 111; Mitsubishi Triton 105; Volswagen Amarok 92; Ford Transit 87; Mazda BT-50 85; Ssangyong Actyon Sport 73; Hyundai iLoad 66; Fiat Ducato 54; Great Wall V240 53; Foton Tunland 40.