New vehicle sales finished on a high at the end of 2017, December numbers rounding out a record 159,871 registrations.
Toyota remained the most popular manufacturer with 32,282 registrations topping the passenger and commercial vehicle charts with 19 and 22 per cent respectively.
Ford, previously No.1 on the commercial list, finished overall on 11 per cent market share while
Holden closed out the top three with 9 per cent.
The top five selling vehicles mimic 2016 with little movement:
1. Ford Ranger
With the battle of the big guns, the Ford Ranger has held its position as New Zealand’s top-selling vehicle with an impressive 9420 new vehicle registrations. Last month the Ford Ranger also again took home the Best in Class — Utility trophy at the New Zealand Car of the Year awards. With results like this, the Ranger’s recipe is something that carmakers should be paying particular attention to.
2. Toyota Hilux
Toyota Hilux
By any measure other than its Ford rival, the new-generation Hilux is an amazing success story with 8106 registrations, up 31 per cent from 2016.
Over the years, Hilux has become a byword the world over for versatility and reliability. Here in New Zealand, this rugged truck is the perfect partner for our go-anywhere, do-anything ethos.
As the Kiwi love affair for the ute continues, the battle between the Hilux and the Ranger is worth keeping an eye on for the coming months.
3. Toyota Corolla
Toyota Corolla
Toyota will no doubt be celebrating having maintained its position as the market leader in passenger vehicles in 2017 with the ever-popular Corolla.
Since its launch of the KE10 in 1967, Kiwis have bought more than 253,000 Corollas — not bad for 50 years of reliability. Last year saw another 7797 additional Corollas on New Zealand roads, the majority being rentals.
4. Toyota RAV4
Toyota RAV4
The RAV4 led the small SUV crusade in New Zealand after its launch in 1994. It started a shift in NZ car-buying habits from standard sedans and wagons to a raft of road-focused SUVs. With registration numbers hitting 4629, Toyota is now reaping the rewards with the claims of “New Zealand’s favourite SUV”.
5. Holden Colorado
Holden Colorado
Closing out the top five is the beautiful Holden Colorado, yes that’s correct, another ute.
Hitting registrations of 4489 (up 20 per cent from last year), the new Colorado represents a huge step forward from the previous model.
We’re excited to see how it stacks up and whether it has the goods to go head on with the big boys in 2018.
2018 prediction
Vehicle segmentation for the year 2017 followed a similar trend to 2016, with four of the top five segments taken up by SUVs and light commercial vehicles.
The top two segments for the year were SUV medium vehicles with 17 per cent share followed by the Pick Up/Chassis Cab 4x4 segment with 14 per cent.
Small cars slotted in the middle with 12 per cent share while SUV large and SUV compact segments round out the top five spots with 11 per cent each of the market.
As records continue to fall and New Zealand’s appetite for SUV and commercial vehicles rises, 2018 is going to be a bumper year.