March Deliveries Best Ever Recorded in New Zealand

Record March sales pushed New Zealand’s first-quarter new vehicle deliveries up 15% year-on-year as the market continued to exceed expectations.

March sales soared 14.5% year-on-year to 13,869 units, with car and SUV deliveries up 12.7% at 9,230 and commercial vehicles ahead 18.4% at 4,639.

The result left the first-quarter total at 39,477 units, well ahead of prior-year’s 34,316.

“Growth in the new-vehicle sector continues to surpass expectations,” Motor Industry Assn. CEO David Crawford says in a statement.

“Not only was it the first time since the MIA began collating CV registration data in 1981 that registrations broke through the 4,000 mark in March, it was also the single largest month of all time,” Crawford says.

Toyota topped the March market with 2,316 deliveries for a 17% market share. Ford followed with 1,522 units, ahead of GM Holden with 1,104.

The car and SUV segment saw Toyota move 1,213 units for a 13% market share, followed by Mazda (905) and Suzuki (734).

Toyota led the CV sector with 1,103 sales, ahead of Ford (879) and GM Holden (393).

The Ford Ranger was the March best-seller with 810 deliveries, followed by the Toyota HiLux with 740 and Toyota Corolla with 396.

With the first quarter wrapped up, Toyota was on top with 5,389 sales, well clear of Ford’s 4,410 and GM Holden’s 3,881.

The car and SUV segment had Toyota on top after three months with 3,842 deliveries, GM Holden with 2,743 and Mazda with 2,429. SUVs now account for 40% of New Zealand’s new-vehicle sales, but the Corolla was the quarter’s top-selling model with 1,335 units. No other vehicle reached four figures.

The CV segment saw Toyota and Ford in a dogfight, with the Japanese brand finding 2,547 buyers to 2,397 by its U.S. rival. GM Holden was a distant third with 1,138 units.

The Ranger topped the segment with 2,214 units, ahead of the HiLux (1,719) and Holden Colorado (1,089).