Seems like the dynamics of the Australian car market are changing,
with the economic conditions also playing a part.
The following statistics come from a variety of recent reviews I have read......
SALES of new cars plummeted 18.5 per cent in January, with Australian
manufacturers bearing the brunt of the downturn in consumer confidence.
In another first, the Mazda3 toppled the Holden Commodore to become the
nation's top-selling car for January. In a worrying sign for the struggling car
industry, sales of Australian-built cars were down by 22 per cent over the same
time last year. Australian manufacturers' share of the total market continued
to slide to just 14 per cent of the overall market.........
......their shrinking share will cause plenty of headaches. Between 2005 and 2008,
their share of the overall market slipped from 25 per cent to 17 per cent last year.
Last month, sales of Toyota's Australian-built Camry and Aurion dropped by 18 per cent
and 47 per cent respectively, while Commodore sales slipped by 4.7 per cent and the
Ford Territory recorded a 42 per cent decline. Sales of the Ford Falcon were up 30 per cent
on last January, although last year's result was the worst on record. The total of 1630 is still
well down on previous years....
.....One car maker to defy the downturn in Australia was Hyundai which recorded
a 17 per cent increase in January.
In another article related to this month's release of the new Kia Cerato it was stated that the company
hoped to emulate it's Hyundai parent company's success with the i30 which is averaging sales of
1200 cars per month. The article concludes with the statement that there is every chance Kia will do
with the Cerato what Hyundai has done with the i30......."turn it into a sales bonanza".
