Win Some, Lose Some

Sydney Morning Herald

Saturday January 12, 2008

Toby Hagon

Last year was a record for new car sales but not everyone was celebrating when the tally eclipsed the 1 million mark, reports Toby Hagon.

NEW car buyers shrugged off stock-market volatility, higher interest rates and the uncertainty of a federal election to buy 1,049,982 new vehicles last year, an increase of 9.1 per cent over 2006. Of the 46 brands on sale in Australia, 38 recorded more sales than they did in 2006.

Only SsangYong, Ford, Chrysler, Jaguar, Smart and Maybach sold fewer cars last year than they did in 2006.

Struggling uber-luxury brand Maybach - which has failed to meet sales targets around the world - failed to sell a single version of its $1 million limousine last year. Rival Rolls-Royce, on the other hand, sold 17 of its million-dollar machines, representing a 41.7 per cent increase from the previous year.

Such gains were common among sports and luxury brands as Australians splashed out more money on more expensive cars.

Brands posting big gains year-on-year included Lotus (91.5 per cent), Aston Martin (44.1 per cent), Ferrari (43.6 per cent), Maserati (25.2 per cent), Lamborghini (21.1 per cent), Porsche (19.6 per cent) and Bentley (17.6 per cent).

Audi once again led the charge of a buoyant luxury car market, posting gains of 25.2 per cent. Other luxury brands that sold more cars last year than in 2006 included Volvo (21.6 per cent), Saab (16 per cent), Lexus (14.5 per cent) and Mercedes-Benz (11.7 per cent).

In 2007, BMW also sold 7.3 per cent more cars than it did in 2006. However, because the overall market grew by 9.1 per cent, BMW lost market share compared with its competitors.

For a pure winner and losers comparison, any car maker that did not increase sales by at least 9.1 per cent - there were 15 of them - lost market share.

Of the four local manufacturers - Holden, Ford, Toyota and Mitsubishi - all except Ford shifted more new metal in 2007.

However, despite a shift to a line-up of more affordable Korean-sourced vehicles, Holden also shed market share, dropping from 15.2 per cent in 2006 to 14 per cent in last year.

In raw percentages, the biggest winners in 2006 were newcomer Skoda (the Volkswagen-owned Czech brand) and boutique sports car maker Caterham, measuring infinite gains because they didn't sell a single vehicle in 2006. Relative newcomer Dodge, too, scored a massive 505 per cent boost in its sales because it arrived on the scene late in 2006. Looking at the overall sales figures, though, Toyota was a clear winner. The company sold 236,647 new vehicles last year, 22,800 more than 2006. It plans to sell more than 250,000 vehicles this year. Its two nearest rivals are yet to eclipse 200,000 sales, something Toyota did two years ago.

The Japanese maker Mazda posted the second biggest overall gain of new car sales, selling 77,734 vehicles, or 14,070 more than it did in 2006. Other notable improvers included Mitsubishi (11,222 more vehicles), Honda (6327), Volkswagen (5829) and Suzuki (5777).

Ford lost more sales than any other brand, losing 6894 sales to rival brands.

Rising fuel prices are no barrier to record car sales

HIGH fuel prices could be a reason for - not against - record new car sales as buyers embrace more fuel-efficient models.

Australians last year bought more diesel-power vehicles and environmentally friendly hybrid vehicles, which combine a petrol engine with an electric motor.

Excluding heavy commercial vehicles (such as large trucks), figures from the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries show 175,022 diesel-powered vehicles were sold last year, representing a huge 34.2 per cent increase over 2006 - itself a record year for diesel sales.

Sales of diesel vehicles continue to be more popular in four-wheel-drives but it's in passenger car sales where the growth has boomed, spawned by an increasing array of options.

Diesel engines can now be had in everything from a Hyundai i30 or Volkswagen Polo to premium limousines and family wagons. Sales of diesel-powered passenger vehicles soared 71.3 per cent last year compared with 2006.

From an environmental perspective, diesel-powered cars are a double-edged sword: they produce more noxious emissions but less carbon dioxide, which is credited with contributing to global warming.

However, while they usually cost more to buy, diesel-powered vehicles are typically cheaper to run. (To learn more see Drive's Green Motoring Guide.)

Hybrid-powered vehicles also saw an increase of 55.9 per cent on 2006, although their price premium and limited availability mean they still represent a market niche - just 4948 hybrids were sold last year.

Despite thousands of owners switching their vehicles to LPG, sales of new LPG-powered vehicles dropped by a modest 0.6 per cent. However, there were still 12,900 who chose the lower running costs of LPG, led predominantly by locally produced large cars.

Of course, petrol-powered vehicles still account for most new vehicles sold in Australia. Of the 1,049,982 new vehicles sold in Australia last year, 819,881 - or 78.5 per cent - were powered by petrol engines.

And despite a notable shift to more efficient, more environmentally friendly machines, Australians still love their performance cars.

Sales of sports cars set new records, growing 18.8 per cent to 18,936. This was led by record sales for premium brands such as Porsche and Ferrari.

Despite a year of lost market share, Holden sold more V8-powered Commodores than ever before.

Fuel type 2007 sales and % change

Diesel 175,022 +34.2

Hybrid 4948 +55.9

LPG 12,900 -0.6

Petrol 819,881 +4.6

© 2008 Sydney Morning Herald

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