March 2019 New Vehicle Sales Soften

David Crawford, Chief Executive Officer of the Motor Industry Association says, “March 2019 registration figures were down 5.4% (757 units) on the same month in 2018. Year to date the market is down 3.7% (1,485 units) on the first three months of 2018 indicating a softening market.”

The total registrations of passenger and SUVs for March 2019 were down 6.9% (625 units) on 2018 volumes, and commercial vehicles were also down 2.7% (132 units) compared to the March 2018.

For the month of March, Toyota remains the overall market leader with 13% market share (1,697 units), followed by Ford with 10% (1,328 units) and Mitsubishi with 9% market share (1,225 units).

Toyota was also the market leader for passenger and SUV registrations with 11% market share (960 units) followed by Mazda with 10% (805 units) and then by Honda with 8% market share (699 units). The top selling passenger and SUV models for the month were the Kia Sportage (379 units) followed by the Mazda CX-5 (310 units) and the Toyota Corolla (301 units).

In the commercial sector, Ford retained the market lead with 20% market share (982 units) followed by Toyota with 15% (737 units) and Mitsubishi third with 12% market share (594 units). The Ford Ranger retained the top spot as the bestselling commercial model with 18% share (850 units) followed by the Mitsubishi Triton with 12% share (594 units) with the Toyota Hilux in third also with 12% market share (581 units).

Vehicle segmentation for March 2019 continued recent trends with SUV’s and light commericals dominating the market. The top three segments for the month were SUV medium vehicles with 18% share followed by the Pick Up/Chassis Cab 4x4 segment with 17% share and the SUV Compact in third with 14% market share.

Year to date the three top selling models are all utes, with the Ford Ranger in the lead with 2,385 units, followed by the Toyota Hilux with 1,698 units and the Mitsubishi Triton in third with 1,541 units.

“The outturn for March 2019 was weaker than the same period on 2017 and 2018, but still strong compared to 2009 to 2016 period. However, it indicates that after a sustained period of growth the 2019 market is likely to be down on last year” said Mr Crawford.

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