12 of the best-selling cars in South Africa – with pricing

·19 May 2024

Despite a still struggling market, thousands of South Africans purchased a new car last month, with some clear favourites among the country’s new car owners.

The South African automotive industry’s eight-month streak of reduced sales has finally ended. The sector recorded a marginal improvement of 2.2% to reach 38,172 units in April 2024.

Of these 38,172 cars sold, 89.9% were sold through dealerships, 5.0% were sold to the rental industry, 2.7% went to the government, and 2.4% were sold to corporate fleets.

Passenger cars made up 25,972 units and showed a year-on-year improvement of 6.1%. On the other hand, light commercial vehicles such as bakkies, minibuses, and panel vans decreased by 9.0% to reach 9,646 units.

Although local sales slightly increased, exports dropped significantly by 23.9% compared to the same month last year, with only 23,394 units being sent overseas.

Naamsa credits the improvement in local sales to a month without any power outages, which helped improve operating conditions and consumer confidence.

The top 10 brands that sold the most cars locally in April 2024 were:

Toyota – 8,541 units
Suzuki – 4,891 units
Volkswagen Group – 4,758 units
Ford – 2,614 units
Hyundai – 2,134 units
Chery – 2,009 units
Isuzu – 1,540 units
GWM – 1,493 units
Nissan – 1,443 units
Renault – 1,307 units

Best-selling models

The Toyota Hilux is still South Africa’s best-selling vehicle, although its sales numbers have decreased significantly compared to the previous month.

In April 2024, the bakkie managed to secure 2,094 new customers, which is a 32.5% decrease from the 3,104 units it achieved in March.

The Ford Ranger saw a small improvement, reaching 2,073 units and climbing three spots to reach second place.

Despite lower sales compared to the previous month, the VW Polo Vivo was another big winner in April, placing third with 1,766 sales.

The Suzuki Swift moved up from seventh to fourth place with 1,725 units, and the Toyota Corolla Cross rounded out the top five with 1,573 units, although this is lower than its March sales.

Other cars in the top 10 include the Isuzu D-Max, Toyota Starlet, Chery Tiggo 4 Pro, Nissan Magnite, and Hyundai Grand i10, each selling between 1,202 and 825 units.

The 12 best-selling cars under the brands listed above and how many were sold last month are listed below.

1. Toyota Hilux – 2,094 units sold