New Car Spending Spree Continues

[SpoolMan]

NEW CAR SPENDING SPREE CONTINUES


Higher petrol prices and hints at interest rate changes have failed to deter new car buyers with the official VFACTS sales figures recording April monthly volumes as the best on record.

A total of 76,330 new cars were sold last month, and while the volume may be slightly down on March (86,426) it's more than 5000 units (7 per cent) ahead of the previous record April set last year.

The record sales has prompted the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) to maintain its forecast for the year at 980,000 new car sales with the year to date (YTD) tally of 313,330 vehicles running at 15,305 sales or 5.1 per cent ahead of the same period last year. In 2004, the total sales reached 955,229 vehicles and although the market continues to remain strong, no one is yet prepared to suggest Australian new vehicle sales will crack the one million mark.

Of the makers, Toyota has regained the number one spot -- after Holden led the market in February and March -- despite having sold fewer cars YTD than in 2004. The Japanese maker retailed 15,257 vehicles in April for 20 per cent of the total market. With 59,590 sales for the first four months of the year equating to 19 per cent market share, Toyota has sold only 1935 more vehicles than Holden, which is in second place.

The two archrivals are set to fight it out for the rest of the year, suggesting buyers can look forward to good deals and plenty of incentives from the two companies.

Ford remains in third position in YTD terms with a total of 42,616 sales while Mazda, Mitsubishi -- which is showing some substantial signs of recovery -- and Nissan all battling it out for the fourth, fifth and sixth spots.

No surprises that buyers are continuing to favour SUVs with the segment recording year on year growth of 15 per cent. But it is not the small, large or luxury four wheel drives that buyers are flocking to but the medium segment with the bulk of that being driven by the runaway success of Ford's local designed and built Territory. With 2098 sales in April and nearly 8000 YTD, the Territory is the biggest selling SUV on the market.

And you don't need to look far to see where a lot of those buyers are coming from with Falcon sales down 4215 units on the same period last year. In fact, the large car market continues to shrink -- down 6064 units or 10.6 per cent on last year - with non-SUV buyers favouring more small and medium cars, a fact reflected by April sales records reported by the likes of Mazda, Subaru and Honda.

What Toyota says:
Record sales of two all-new light commercial models have helped return Toyota to the top of Australia's motor vehicle sales charts. Toyota recorded its best ever sales for the month of April with 15,257 beating its April 2004 by 189 units.
" Our sales were constrained in the first quarter by model run-outs yet we still managed to retain top spot. The April result indicates we are likely to get stronger as the year goes on," said Toyota Australia's executive director of sales and marketing, David Buttner.

Among the star performers for Toyota was its all-new HiLux 4x4 which won its segment with 1,295 sales - 11.5 per cent up on the record for the month, set last April.

All-new HiAce Van also debuted strongly with 693 sales - its best-ever result for the month and up 90.9 per cent on April last year.

Toyota also performed strongly in both the Passenger Car and SUV markets last month. Both Corolla and Echo recorded their best ever April sales results

What Ford says:
Ford Australia achieved its best result for the month of April since 1997 with sales of 10,293 up 7.8 per cent and 746 units year on year (YoY).

" It's great to see continued industry strength with the overall market up by seven percent in April," Ford Australia President, Tom Gorman said. "We're pleased with our progress as Ford sales continue to outpace total industry growth in April and through the first four months of the year."

Ford says its stand-out performers for the month were its SUV and light commercial vehicles, as well as the recently-released prestige Ford LTD BA MKII model.

What Mazda says:
Mazda, with record April sales of 5010 vehicles, was the top selling importer last month having sold 18,418 cars YTD, 6343 or 53 per cent more than its nearest import rival.

Mazda Australia managing director, Doug Dickson, said: "Our strong April result maintains our run of record months this year. Mazda's performance is a reflection of the strength of our product line-up. However, nothing stands still and our range gets a significant boost in the coming months.

" We remain firmly on track to retail a record 60,000 vehicles this year, a result that would see Mazda's sales improve by a massive 118 per cent since 2000".

What Subaru says:
Subaru achieved record April sales of 3015 units -- 9.0 per cent ahead of the previous April, taking the company to a record 12,129 sales for the first four months of a year.

Impreza sales of 887 units were an April record for the model and 13.7 per cent ahead of the same month last year. Liberty sales of 704 were 27 per cent ahead of April 2004.

What Honda says:
Honda Australia had its best ever April result with total sales of 3,677 units. Thailand built models accounted for 35 per cent of the monthly sales, with the Accord achieving 773 units and the Civic four-door 524 units.

Honda Australia Senior Director, Lindsay Smalley was pleased with the result. "It is pleasing to see our Thailand built products performing so well following the implementation of the Thai Free Trade Agreement last January."

CarPoint will publish a full VFACTS top ten wrap next week.
By Russell Williamson and thx to carpoint.