VFACTS: New Car Sales Insights July 2021

Datium Insights Monthly VFACTS Update

Read our monthly update on VFACTS new car sales results.



New Car Sales July 2021

  • July 2021 saw a total figure of 84,161 new car sales for Australia as reported by VFACTS
  • Figures show new car sales were up 16% in July 2021 versus July 2020
  • NSW was down 2% compared to July 2020, likely owing to lockdowns
  • Overall, most states and territories are up this year compared to this time last year, aside from ACT which is down 17% owing to strong federal government purchases in 2020

Australian 2020 New Car Sales

Australian 2020 New Car Sales Cumulative YoY Change by State - Units

Australian 2020 New Car Sales Cumulative YoY Change by State - Percentage

New Car Sales Trends

The top 5 models with the greatest increases so far in 2021 are:

  • MG ZS (+8,848 units)
  • Isuzu Ute D-Max 4X4 (+7,397 units)
  • Ford Ranger 4X4 (+6,785 units)
  • Toyota Hilux 4X4 (+6,445 units)
  • Mazda CX-5 (+5,733 units)

The bottom 5 models with the greatest decreases so far in 2021 are:

  • Volkswagen Golf (-5,812 units)
  • Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class (-2,522 units)
  • Honda Civic (-2,430 units)
  • Honda CR-V (-2,216 units)
  • Toyota Kluger (-2,188 units)

The top segment increases so far in 2021 compared to 2020 are:

  • SUV Light (+136%)
  • Micro (+86%)
  • SUV Upper Large < $100K (+61%)
  • Large > $70K (+59%)
  • Vans/CC 2.5-3.5t (+58%)

Conversely, some of the largest decreases are:

  • Upper Large < $100K (-39%)
  • Light Buses => 20 Seats (-37%)
  • Vans/CC <= 2.5t (-33%)
  • Large < $70K (-24%)
  • Small > $40K (-19%)

Some other highlights so far:

  • Toyota continues to dominate sales increases with 5 of the top 20 increases in 2021 being Toyota models
  • Chinese brand MG is making headwinds, with its ZS and MG3 models seeing substantial increase in 2021
  • Passenger vehicles continue to see the slowest recovery in sales in 2021 (+6%), particularly in small (-7%) and medium (+0%) segments
  • The rental market has finally seen strong growth, up 17,602 units (+93%) compared to 2020
  • Private sales (+52%) now make up more than 50% of all sales in the market due to dealers gaining higher margins on these types of sales

Australian 2020 New Car Sales Cumulative YoY Change by Segment

Australian 2020 New Car Sales Cumulative YoY Change by Vehicle - Top 20 Increases

Australian 2020 New Car Sales Cumulative YoY Change by Vehicle - Top 20 Decreases

Australian 2020 New Car Sales Cumulative YoY Change by Buyer Groups

Sales by Import Country

  • Sales of imported vehicles from Japan continue to rebound significantly in 2021, seeing an increase of 57,097 units compared to 2020
  • Sales of imported vehicles from China continue to skyrocket in 2021 with an increase of 29,246 compared to 2020
  • Sales of imported vehicles from Germany and USA saw the largest declines so far, with Germany down 9,209 units and USA down 2,371. These countries have been hit by production issues due to COVID outbreaks.

Australian 2020 New Car Sales Cumulative YoY Change by Import Country - Top 10 Increases

Australian 2020 New Car Sales Cumulative YoY Change by Import Country - Top 10 Decreases

Datium Insights Weekly Market Update


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Tanim Ahmed

By Tanim Ahmed, Head of Product at Datium Insights

Tanim is a Macquarie University alumni with degrees in Finance and Economics. He has spent a decade in the Leasing and Finance industry, specializing in Residual Value risk.

Please contact Datium Insights for further analytical support and advisory services.

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