Toyota Hilux – The best selling car in South Africa
The cars motorists buy will vary from country to country, and the style of cars we prefer has changed over time. Buyers in South Africa, Australia and South America love bakkies (or UTEs ) and smaller SUVs/ crossovers, while in Europe the luxury SUV, hatchbacks and sedans are still very popular.
South Africa’s best seller by far is the Toyota Hilux bakkie, going back decades. However, decades ago the Hilux was a single cab, no-frills workhorse, while today you can go from Hilux workhorse to a full-luxury 4×4 double cab, and everything in between, without breaking a sweat.
The second favourite by far is the Polo Vivo, representing the economic reality and practicality of the smaller hatch here. The larger hatch like the Golf is all but dead, while the sedan is on life support. Except for the luxury Germans, their sales volumes are tiny in our market.
SUVs, especially compact and sub-compact sizes, are very popular and growing.
In America, unsurprisingly, they like oversized bakkies, more accurately called trucks. The Ford F-series has been the best seller there for a long time, followed by two other huge bakkies. The F150 Lightning is the new full-EV there and its introduction and instant popularity will go a long way to mainstreaming EVs there. So beware Tesla.
China is the biggest car market in the world, and possibly the most complex. Mainstream non-Chinese brands struggle to compete against local models, with only one VW making the top three there. One explanation is that Chinese consumers see a car in the same light as a smartphone, an interconnected part of your life. The local brands know this and their cars meet this need.
The UK market is an outlier, with the Ford Transit Custom top seller. Why? Perhaps blame Jeremy Clarkson from Top Gear.
In India, Suzuki dominates with six of the top ten sellers. Many smaller SUVs are originally designed for the Indian market and then find favour in South Africa and countries in South East Asia and Latin America.
Here, briefly, are the top five sellers in a number of countries/ regions in the world for 2021. Numbers have been rounded up or down for the sake of brevity. South Africa gets a more comprehensive list.
South Africa
- Toyota Hilux — 36 000
- VW Polo Vivo — 22 000
- Ford Ranger — 19 000
- VW Polo — 18 000
- Isuzu D-Max — 16 000
- Toyota Hi-Ace — 15 000
- Toyota Starlet — 12 000
- Nissan NP200 — 11 000
- Toyota Fortuner — 9 000
- Toyota Urban Cruiser — 8000
- Suzuki Swift — 8 000
- Renault Kwid — 8 000
- Toyota Corolla Quest — 8 000
- VW T-Cross — 8 000
- Renault Triber — 7 000
Europe
- VW Golf — 205 000
- Peugeot 208 — 200 000
- Dacia Sandero — 200 000
- Renault Clio — 200 000
- Peugeot 2008 (SUV) — 190 000
USA
- Ford F-Series (pickup) — 700 000
- Ram pickup (pickup) — 600 000
- Chevrolet Silverado (pickup) — 500 000
- Toyota Rav4 — 400 000
- Honda CR-V — 350 000
UK
- Ford Transit Custom — 50 000
- Vauxhall Corsa — 40 100
- Tesla Model 3 — 35 000
- Ford Transit — 34 000
- Mini — 32 000
China
- Wuling Hongguang Mini EV — 400 000
- VW Lavida (compact sedan) — 400 000
- Haval H6 — 370 000
- Toyota Corolla — 325 000
- Changan CS75 (compact crossover) — 280 000
Latin America
- Toyota Hilux — 130 000
- Chevrolet Onix hatch/sedan— 120 000
- Fiat Strada bakkie — 115,750
- Nissan Versa (Almera) — 100 000
- VW Gol – a small hatch, not a typo — 95 000
Models we know also sell well:
- Jeep Renegade — 90 000
- Hyundai Creta — 90 000
- Renault Kwid — 80 000
Japan
- Toyota Yaris — 210 000
- Toyota Roomy (mini MPV) — 135 000
- Toyota Corolla — 111 000
- Toyota Alphard (MPV) — 95 000
- Nissan Note (compact hatch) — 90 000
Of course, top sellers are important, but cars are so well made to compete in global markets that it is rare to find a dud. Here are some excellent examples of what is available in South Africa right now.
