The new vehicle market in New Zealand has seen its best year ever, with registrations for the year hitting an all-time record of 146,753 vehicles.
The result was an impressive 9.5% up on 2015’s 134,041 registrations. 2016 was the third record year in a row.
Overall the passenger and SUV market for 2016 was the strongest ever with 102,514 registrations, breaking a long-standing record dating back to 1973 when 97,346 passenger vehicles were sold.
Commercial registrations were up 13.2% to 44,292 – again a record.
“While many are writing off 2016 as a year to forget, for the new vehicle sector it was annus mirabilis, a wonderful year,” Motor Industry Association chief executive David Crawford says.
“The new vehicle market for 2016 performed significantly beyond expectations and along the way exceeded every single previous record.
For the 2016 year Toyota (18%), Ford (11%), Holden (10%), Mazda (8%) and Mitsubishi (6%) respectively were the top five overall market leaders.
Toyota, Holden and Mazda were the passenger and SUV vehicle market leaders. In commercials, Ford held out Toyota for the top spot.
The Ford Ranger not only retained its position as the bestselling commercial model for 2016, but it also retained the top spot of any model for 2016.
For the full 2016 year, the Ranger retained its position as the bestselling model with 8478 vehicles, followed by the Toyota Corolla with 6274 vehicles and the Toyota Hilux with 6187 vehicles.
The shift away from passenger cars continues to be strong, according to Crawford.
“The 2016 record year marked a continued shift in buyer preference and market dynamics with for the first time in New Zealand history more SUV’s being sold than passenger vehicles,” Crawford notes.
“SUV’s accounted for 36% of the market (52,913 vehicles) compared to 35% for all other passenger vehicles (51,552) and 29% for commercial vehicles.”
