There is a critical shortage of new cars in Australia, but Aussies motorists are happy to wait in line for months for these vehicles.
Australian new car sales were slow off the mark in January.
Sales figures revealed by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) showed 75,863 new vehicles found a home in January.
This was down almost five per cent on the 79,666 sold in the same month in 2021.
Tony Weber, the head of the FCAI, put the slump down to a supply shortage of new cars caused by a global shortage of semiconductors.
The Toyota HiLux remains the best selling vehicle in the country despite long wait times.
“This is an issue impacting markets all over the globe. Despite this, consumer interest, inquiry, and the fundamental demand for new cars in Australia remains strong,” says Mr Weber.
“Manufacturers are continuing to work hard to address supply chain and production issues. We are also experiencing bottlenecks in having vehicles processed from some Australian ports. We will continue to work with all parties involved to resolve the issue.”
Some models have wait times of up to 10 months as makers struggle to clear back orders.
James Voortman, the head of the Australian Automotive Dealer Association, said the situation is entirely beyond dealers’ control and it is a very challenging time for the industry.
“Supply is very tight and a lot of customers are still facing lengthy waiting periods. Most customers are understanding, as there is an acceptance that there are delays for many products, not just cars,” said Mr Voortman.
The Mazda CX-5 was the third best selling vehicle in the country.
The difficult operating environment is made worse by the fact dealers aren’t sure when the supply shortage may ease.
“We keep getting the optimistic version of events, where the situation will start getting better in six months, but we believe the end of the year is more likely the best case scenario,” said Voortman.
Utes sold well during January claiming four of the top 10 spots.
The Toyota HiLux was again number 1 with 3591 sales, followed by the Ford Ranger (3245) in second spot and the Mitsubishi Triton (2876) and Isuzu D-Max in fourth and sixth spots respectively.
Mazda’s CX-5 (3213) bounced back strongly in January as supply of the popular mid-size SUV picked up.
Isuzu recently launched a cheaper version of its D-Max ute.
Chinese brand MG continued its strong run into 2022 with two of its vehicles cracking the top 10. The MG ZS (1588) small SUV and MG3 (1551) small hatchback came in eighth and ninth.
Toyota’s LandCruiser and RAV4 both fell out of the top 10 as they were especially affected by the supply shortages.
The Toyota Prado (2566) 4WD was a beneficiary of this with it selling in big numbers through January.
MG continued its strong run into 2022.
Toyota’s evergreen Corolla also tumbled out of the top 10, leaving the Hyundai i30 (1642) as the best selling hatchback.
The Volkswagen Group, which includes Audi and Skoda has been stung badly by the shortages.
Sales for VW dropped by about 44 per cent, Audi by 46 per cent and Skoda’s sales slid by more than 63 per cent compared to January 2021.
The Hyundai i30 was the best selling small car in the country.
Volkswagen Australia spokesman Paul Pottinger told news.com.au previously that customers still faced delays of “several months” to get hold of popular Tiguan variants.
“It’s not ideal but it is improving,” he said.
“It’s going to get better between now and the end of this year.”
Very few car brands posted a positive result in January. Of the major makers Kia, Mazda and Mitsubishi were the only ones to start the year in the black.
Smaller brands such as Peugeot and Renault fared better.
Electric vehicle sales have doubled since the start of 2021, with 620 examples finding a new home in January. The real numbers are likely to be higher as Tesla doesn’t provide its sales figures to the FCAI.
The American electric car brand recently revealed it sold more than 12,000 vehicles in 2021, which is more than eight times the next best selling brand.
TOP 10 SELLING CARS IN JANUARY
Toyota HiLux 3591
Ford Ranger 3245
Mazda CX-5 3213
Mitsubishi Triton 2876
Toyota Prado 2566
Isuzu D-Max 1895
Hyundai i30 1642
MG ZS 1588
MG3 1551
Subaru Forester 1480
TOP 10 SELLING BRANDS IN JANUARY
Toyota 15,333
Mazda 9805
Mitsubishi 6533
Kia 5520
Hyundai 5128
Ford 4528
MG 3538
Subaru 2722
Isuzu 2715
Nissan 2334
Keyword: Top 10 best selling vehicles in the country revealed