Australian March 2009 Sales Results

[Reaper]

Australian March 2009 Sales Results

Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries
3 April 2009
www.fcai.com.au

Official VFACTS data released by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) shows that 75,650 passenger cars, SUVs and commercial vehicles were sold in March 2009 – down 17.1 per cent (15,635 vehicles) compared to the same month in 2008.

“This result is certainly down on a year ago but the extent of the fall in the market appears to have stabilised somewhat in recent months,” FCAI Chief Executive Andrew McKellar said.

Year-to-date 212,970 new vehicles have been sold, down 19.2 per cent compared to the same quarter last year.

“Given the impact of the global economic downturn, new vehicle sales for the first quarter of 2009 are around the level we would expect them to be,” he said.

“Around the world the automotive industry has been disproportionately affected by the impact of the financial crisis and resultant economic downturn. We can take some comfort from the fact that the Australian new vehicle market has performed far better than those in almost all other developed economies.” Mr McKellar said.

Toyota was Australia’s best-selling brand in March with 16,608 vehicles (22.0 per cent market share) followed by Holden with 9,188 (12.1 per cent of the market) and Ford with 7,570 vehicle sales (10.0 per cent market share).

Year-to-date, Toyota leads the market with 44,309 vehicles sold, followed by Holden with 26,979 and Ford with 20,986 vehicles.


Top Australian Brands March 2009

Brand - Sales
1. Toyota - 16,608
2. Holden - 9188
3. Ford - 7570
4. Mazda - 6116
5. Hyundai - 4907
6. Mitsubishi - 4694
7. Nissan - 4396
8. Subaru - 3415
9. Honda - 3349
10. Volkswagen - 2522


Top Australian Vehicles March 2009

Vehicle - Sales
1. Holden Commodore - 3544
2. Toyota HiLux - 3306
3. Toyota Corolla - 3007
4. Mazda 3 - 2801
5. Ford Falcon - 1990
6. Toyota Yaris - 1741
7. Hyundai Getz - 1597
8. Nissan Navara - 1562
9. Toyota Camry - 1515
10. Hyundai i30 - 1503
FCAI

​

 

[Calaber]

Twenty years ago, who would have thought that Toyota would not only top the sales charts - they would outsell Holden by about 50%?

 

[mavro]

DO you know why ??

they build beter cars and holden is selling less cars because more then 1/2 the cars from holden ARE NOT holdens.

the commerdore is too big for old poeple, the barina is a daewoo( now chevi ) and its not a nice car and not appealing for the young.
and everything between it is OLD models from OPEL or daewoo.

if holden wants too improve sales get the OPEL Insignia too aussie and the new opel corsa.

but thats what i think

 

[Reaper]

DO you know why ??

Clearly you don't.

they build beter cars and holden is selling less cars because more then 1/2 the cars from holden ARE NOT holdens.

the commerdore is too big for old poeple, the barina is a daewoo( now chevi ) and its not a nice car and not appealing for the young.
and everything between it is OLD models from OPEL or daewoo.

if holden wants too improve sales get the OPEL Insignia too aussie and the new opel corsa.

but thats what i think

Actually it has nothing to do with better or worse cars. Toyota have many strong/above average performers across nearly every market segment. That is micro, small, small/medium, medium, light truck, light suv, medium 4wd, heavy 4wd, commercial (vans) etc etc.

No other manufacturer does that.

Reaper

 

[danja]

If Holden knew what they were doing they'd be driving to drive the Astra further into the market place. Instead they're talking about axing it. Go figure.

Best thing that can happen to Holden right now would be for GM to cut them loose and a private investor to pick them up.

 

[Reaper]

If Holden knew what they were doing they'd be driving to drive the Astra further into the market place. Instead they're talking about axing it. Go figure.

Best thing that can happen to Holden right now would be for GM to cut them loose and a private investor to pick them up.

Not sure what the thinking is there. There were rumors that Open were trying to **** them over on price so it's a bit of posturing by Holden. Not sure how much you can read into that. Euro Astra/Vectra/Barina are/were very good cars. The problem is they didn't sell. The Korean stuff is rubbish but price seems to cure many sins in this segment and they are selling many more.

Reaper

 

[mavro]

mr reaper :Clearly you don't.as you wrote has nothing 2 do with it. just a different opinion .
toyota hasent been sleeping the last few years they have been exploring every segment for years. yes they have more money than holden but holden is GM.and GM as you know is about 15 brands world wide and there 4 plenty of know how.
and quality has got alot to do with it. toyota has been top of the satisfaction list for years ( j.d.powers in u.s.a) all around the world.

 

[danja]

Not sure what the thinking is there. There were rumors that Open were trying to **** them over on price so it's a bit of posturing by Holden. Not sure how much you can read into that. Euro Astra/Vectra/Barina are/were very good cars. The problem is they didn't sell. The Korean stuff is rubbish but price seems to cure many sins in this segment and they are selling many more.

With the way car prices are going they're practically disposable. Drive them till too many parts fall off, then throw it in the bin and get a new one.

Barina's have always been aimed at the budget segment, it makes sense they'd offer the cheapest tin can on wheels they can. The Astra I really can't fathom because that's where I see the money to be made, small quality cars.

Astra's are still a good car. Underrated in my opinion. Now the Vectra has been phased out I'll be interesting to see how well the Epica takes off... Poorly as far as I can tell.

mr reaper :Clearly you don't.as you wrote has nothing 2 do with it. just a different opinion .
toyota hasent been sleeping the last few years they have been exploring every segment for years. yes they have more money than holden but holden is GM.and GM as you know is about 15 brands world wide and there 4 plenty of know how.
and quality has got alot to do with it. toyota has been top of the satisfaction list for years ( j.d.powers in u.s.a) all around the world.

It's an easy mistake to assume that just because a business is big, that the corporate knowledge they've accumulated is well documented, managed and disseminated appropriately throughout the business. Often this is not the case.

I think part of the reason that the Japanese car makers have the upper hand now is not so much that their vehicles are superior (in many cases they are, but in many cases they aren't), rather it's that their local markets have been demanding smaller more practical, economical cars for far longer than ours and the US have. They've gotten the game down well, whereas the Yanks are playing catch up.

 

[1991_Vn2nV]

Umm aren't they the February results, not March???

 

[Calaber]

Mavro

I already had a pretty fair idea of WHY Toyota heads Holden today - my question was rhetorical.

As Reaper said, the range of Toyota vehicles is astonishing - in my opinion, far too large. They make a vehicle to suit every niche of the market, then create a new niche and fill it with a new design. Think about the RAV, Prado and Landcruiser. Who else has 3 separate 4WD vehicles aimed at the passenger market? And does the market really need all 3?

Toyota has marketed itself on quality for years and this is a claim which has stood up well. They have a reputation for solid and reliable cars. People who only want reliable, comfortable transport think Toyota. People who like to drive cars with a bit of character and excitement don't. Toyotas are bland and boring - I hate the bloody things, because they invariably seem to attract the triffid who just wants to drive at their own pace and do everything possible to annoy other drivers (especially the elderly, who seem to love Camrys).

The other point to Toyota's success is that their cars have been more attuned to market requirements for many years. With the exceptions of the Lexcen and Avalon, all their cars have succeeded in Australia, because they were marketed as economical, well engineered and practical. And that's exactly what they were.

Holden, on the other hand, is driven by a company that has failed to read the future as well as Toyota. GM is in trouble because for years, the big money on the US market came from small trucks and they were the vehicles that dominated the passenger market. The standards of engineering and advancement needed to improve trucks was not very high, so their market suffered through lack of need to build anything better. Now it has come home to bite them - hard. Nobody wants trucks, V8's are now being seen as evil, because fuel prices in the States are finally starting to reflect real world trends, the Government is now pulling the strings and the cars that GM needs are still only prototypes or drawing board proposals. All need time and massive funding to reach the market, neither of which GM has.

It's true that Holden's marketing decisions in recent years have been bad. Because of the need to maintain the $13990 pricing for the Barina, the XC Barina was dumped as it cost too much. Enter a tired and crude old Daewoo we had already seen and disliked. Likewise the TS Astra - replaced by the Viva. Another rehash of an unpopular Daewoo. The Epica - updated Leganza. How Holden thought that marketing Daewoos, which were very poorly regarded in this country, as Holdens, would work is beyond me. Only the Captiva is worth considering and it had considerable Holden input in its design.

If Holden was disposed of (and this is not too likely, surprisingly, it's Opel and Vauxhall that GM has discussed selling off), I would hate to see it end up in Chinese hands, which is the most likely scenario.