We’ve reported on the full-year 2020 sales figures, as you can read here. Sales last year fell to their lowest since 2003 – down 13.7 per cent to 916,968 units.
But in the tradition of reporting on each month’s results, here is a separate piece detailing the December-specific sales.
Sales in December grew 13.5 per cent over the same month in 2019, making it the second month in succession of positive growth.
All States and Territories had gains:
- ACT: 1528 sales, up 35.8 per cent
- NSW: 29,335 sales, up 9.2 per cent
- NT: 796, up 38.0 per cent
- Qld: 20,342 sales, up 19.2 per cent
- SA: 6204 sales, up 16.7 per cent
- Tas: 1979 sales, up 7.6 per cent
- Vic: 26,370 sales, up 8.7 per cent
- WA: 9098 sales, up 26.4 per cent
It was the private market doing the heavy lifting. Sales to private buyers were up 40.9 per cent to 50,404 units.
By contrast, business fleet sales dipped 4.7 per cent to 34,446, rental car sales declined 18.8 per cent to 5305, and government purchases fell 22.9 per cent to 1971.
Brands
Toyota dominated the market, growing its sales over December 2019 by almost 36 per cent. In so doing, it grew its market share to a commanding 24.5 per cent, and took top spot in 10 VFACTS vehicle segments.
Second-placed Mazda grew its sales by an even more impressive 42 per cent thanks mainly to the new CX-30 and BT-50, and Hyundai in third was up 26.1 per cent due in large part to a huge monthly haul for the Kona small SUV.
Mitsubishi’s sales declined almost 10 per cent yet it held onto fourth, edging Ford in fifth spot (up 30 per cent on the back of Ranger 4×4). Rounding out the top 10 were Kia, Nissan, Mercedes-Benz (including vans), Subaru, and Volkswagen.
Knocking on the door was Isuzu Ute, up nearly 22 per cent on the back of strong new-generation D-Max demand – despite short supply causing a wait list on the flagship X-Terrain variant.
Honda sales tumbled 27.5 per cent, leaving it 12th just ahead of BMW (up 29 per cent). MG finished 14th and grew 167.2 per cent for the month, and in so doing eclipsed Audi and Suzuki.
Rounding out the top 20 were fellow Chinese brand LDV (up 175 per cent), then Lexus (up 60.5 per cent due to the NX and RX), Volvo (up 34.5 per cent), and Land Rover (up 14.7 per cent).
Some smaller-volume brands that performed well included Jeep (up 81 per cent thanks to good months from the Compass, Gladiator and Grand Cherokee), Skoda (up nearly 31 per cent on the back of the new Kamiq that was its second-best seller behind Octavia), and Haval (up 130 per cent thanks largely to the H2 small SUV).
| Brand | Sales | % Change |
|---|---|---|
| Toyota | 23,470 | 35.6% |
| Mazda | 8556 | 42.0% |
| Hyundai | 6734 | 26.1% |
| Mitsubishi | 6380 | -9.8% |
| Ford | 6306 | 30.2% |
| Kia | 4700 | -4.9% |
| Nissan | 4216 | 6.8% |
| Mercedes-Benz | 3725 | 1.5% |
| Subaru | 3402 | 18.9% |
| Volkswagen | 3291 | -19.3% |
| Isuzu Ute | 3270 | 21.9% |
| Honda | 2619 | -27.5% |
| BMW | 2018 | 28.9% |
| MG | 1924 | 167.2% |
| Audi | 1736 | -10.1% |
| Suzuki | 1594 | 10.0% |
| LDV | 1399 | 174.9% |
| Lexus | 1157 | 60.5% |
| Volvo Car | 870 | 34.5% |
| Land Rover | 764 | 14.7% |
| Renault | 761 | -9.8% |
| Skoda | 743 | 30.6% |
| Jeep | 661 | 81.1% |
| Haval | 400 | 129.9% |
| Porsche | 393 | 48.9% |
| Mini | 288 | 30.3% |
| SsangYong | 268 | 22.9% |
| Ram | 261 | -8.7% |
| Great Wall | 250 | 168.8% |
| Peugeot | 143 | -33.5% |
| Fiat | 143 | -12.3% |
Models
The Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger utes once again topped the charts, ahead of the Toyota RAV4.
Rounding out the top 10 were the Toyota Corolla (meaning Toyota sold the number-one SUV, light commercial and passenger car), and Prado, then the Isuzu D-Max with a ripper, Toyota LandCruiser wagon, Mazda CX-5, Hyundai i30, and Nissan X-Trail.
| Model | Sales |
|---|---|
| Toyota HiLux | 5572 |
| Ford Ranger | 4265 |
| Toyota RAV4 | 3542 |
| Toyota Corolla | 2516 |
| Toyota Prado | 2500 |
| Isuzu D-Max | 2409 |
| Toyota LandCruiser wagon | 2235 |
| Mazda CX-5 | 2060 |
| Hyundai i30 | 1996 |
| Nissan X-Trail | 1822 |
| Hyundai Kona | 1785 |
| Mitsubishi ASX | 1756 |
| Hyundai Tucson | 1582 |
| Mitsubishi Triton | 1575 |
| Toyota HiAce | 1538 |
| Subaru Forester | 1480 |
| Mitsubishi Outlander | 1371 |
| Mazda CX-3 | 1333 |
| Toyota LandCruiser C/C | 1327 |
| Mazda 3 | 1319 |
| Kia Cerato | 1313 |
| Toyota Camry | 1280 |
| Nissan Navara | 1148 |
| Mazda CX-30 | 1033 |
| Mazda BT-50 | 1024 |
| MG ZS | 1010 |
| Subaru XV | 1005 |
| Toyota C-HR | 1003 |
| Kia Seltos | 951 |
| Isuzu MU-X | 861 |
Top sellers by segment
- Micro Cars: Kia Picanto (323), Fiat 500 (46), Mitsubishi Mirage (22)
- Light Cars under $25,000: MG 3 (707), Suzuki Swift (505), Toyota Yaris (506)
- Light Cars over $25,000: Mini (160), Audi A1 (34), Citroen C3 (4)
- Small Cars under $40,000: Toyota Corolla (2516), Hyundai i30 (1996), Mazda 3 (1319)
- Small Cars over $40,000: Mercedes-Benz A-Class (530), Audi A3 (201), BMW 1 Series (142)
- Medium Cars under $60,000: Toyota Camry (1280), Skoda Octavia (214), Mazda 6 (148)
- Medium Cars over $60,000: Mercedes-Benz C-Class (509), BMW 3 Series (302), Mercedes-Benz CLA (175)
- Large Cars under $70,000: Kia Stinger (117), Skoda Superb (33), Holden Commodore (1)
- Large Cars over $70,000: BMW 5 Series (83), Mercedes-Benz E-Class (76), Audi A6 (29)
- Upper Large Cars: BMW 8 Series Gran Coupe (8), BMW 7 Series (8), Mercedes-Benz S-Class and Chrysler 300 (7)
- People Movers: Kia Carnival (119), Honda Odyssey (102), LDV G10 (93)
- Sports Cars under $80,000: Ford Mustang (334), Hyundai Veloster and Subaru BRZ (53), BMW 2 Series (44)
- Sports Cars over $80,000: Mercedes-Benz C-Class (153), BMW 4 Series (86), Mercedes-Benz E-Class (36)
- Sports Cars over $200,000: Porsche 911 (30), Ferrari range (16), Aston Martin range (7)
- Light SUVs: Mazda CX-3 (1333), Toyota Yaris Cross (517), Volkswagen T-Cross (440)
- Small SUVs under $40,000: Hyundai Kona (1785), Mitsubishi ASX (1756), Mazda CX-30 (1033)
- Small SUVs over $40,000: Audi Q3 (660), Mercedes-Benz GLA (489), Volvo XC40 (469)
- Medium SUVs under $60,000: Toyota RAV4 (3542), Mazda CX-5 (2060), Nissan X-Trail (1822)
- Medium SUVs over $60,000: Lexus NX (475), BMW X3 (382), Mercedes-Benz GLC (295)
- Large SUVs under $70,000: Toyota Prado (2500), Isuzu MU-X (861), Kia Sorento (739)
- Large SUVs over $70,000: BMW X5 (367), Lexus RX (241), Audi Q7 (234)
- Upper Large SUVs under $100,000: Toyota LandCruiser (2235), Nissan Patrol (336)
- Upper Large SUVs over $100,000: BMW X7 (80), Land Rover Discovery (71), Mercedes-Benz G-Class (64)
- Light Vans: Volkswagen Caddy (216), Renault Kangoo (35), Peugeot Partner (12)
- Medium Vans: Toyota HiAce (1382), Hyundai iLoad (433), Renault Trafic (272)
- Large Vans: Mercedes-Benz Sprinter (194), Renault Master (162), Ford Transit Heavy (144)
- Light Buses: Toyota HiAce (156), Toyota Coaster (24), Mercedes-Benz Sprinter (10)
- 4×4 Utes: Toyota HiLux (1119), Isuzu D-Max (634), Ford Ranger (390)
- 4×4 Utes: Toyota HiLux (4453), Ford Ranger (3875), Isuzu D-Max (1775)
Miscellaneous
The top five segments by market share were Medium SUV (18.2 per cent), 4×4 Utes (17.5 per cent), Small SUV (14.7 per cent), Large SUV (12.4 per cent), and Small Cars (10.7 per cent).
There were 52,893 petrol vehicles sold (up 4.1 per cent), 32,693 diesels (up 24.1 per cent), 6124 hybrids (up 68.1 per cent), 236 plug-in hybrids (up 84.4 per cent), and 180 full-electric vehicles excluding Tesla which does not report its sales (up 97.8 per cent).
The top sources of new vehicle sold in December were Japan (35,911), Thailand (21,454), Korea (11,809), Germany (4308), and China (4245, up 182.6 per cent).
