Top ten best-selling automobiles in 2022, with the top model selling over 30,000 units

According to data from the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (Naamsa), South Africa’s new-vehicle industry is still on the rise, with 2022 sales running 13.6% ahead of the same period in 2021.

Over the course of the year – from January to November 2022 – the automobile sector sold over half a million new automobiles, totaling 487,699 units in 2022 with one month remaining. March saw the highest number of sales, with 50,607 copies sold.

Toyota is the most popular brand, with 120,805 vehicles sold by the end of November, and will be the top manufacturer of local auto sales in 2022. This accounts for 24.7% of all new automobiles sold in South Africa this year.

Volkswagen Group comes in second with 64,470 cars sold locally, and Suzuki Auto comes in third with 44,120 units sold, accounting for 13.2% and 9% of all new vehicles sold in South Africa this year, respectively.

The graph below depicts the top five most popular automobile brands in South Africa by sales in 2022.

Toyota’s success may be attributed in part to the popularity of its flagship Hilux bakkie, which sold 29,647 of the brand’s total units.

Toyota, unsurprisingly, has four slots on this list of the best-selling automobiles in 2022, with the Toyota Hilux securely in first place, followed by the Toyota Urban Cruiser in third, the Toyota Corolla Cross in eighth, and the Toyota Starlet in tenth.

Sales projections for new vehicles in 2023

Despite favourable results for automobile manufacturers in 2022, the strong performance of the new vehicle industry is slowing due to the seventh consecutive increase in interest rates since November 2021.

This is expected to put strain on car sales, according to Naamsa and auto reseller Combined Motor Holdings (CMH).

“Growth prospects for the year’s balance remain constrained as higher interest rates and consequent higher debt servicing costs weigh on disposable income. As a consequence, single-digit growth in new vehicle sales could be expected for 2023,” said Naamsa.

Prospective customers’ economic restrictions are exacerbated by the fact that new car costs are likely to grow.

According to recent statistics from TansUnion’s Vehicle Pricing Index (VPI), new car prices increased year on year to 6.8% in Q3 2022 from 3.8% in Q3 2021, with economists blaming the large devaluation of the rand throughout the course of 2022 for the high spike in new vehicle pricing.

CMH even went so far as to predict that new car costs will rise by up to 10% in the following four months.

Nonetheless, the new car market continued to beat predictions, and with one month left in the year, it was 13.6% ahead of the same period in 2021.

With multiple new model releases in the last month and before the end of the year, Naamsa noted that growth prospects for domestic vehicle exports remain positive in the medium term.

The following are the top ten best-selling automobiles in South Africa in 2022.

1. Toyota Hilux 

• Units sold: 29,647
• Starting price: R313,300

2. VW Polo Vivo

• Units sold: 19,445
• Starting price: R243,600

3. Toyota Urban Cruiser

• Units sold: 16,047
• Starting price: R280,400

4. Isuzu D-max

• Units sold: 15,879
• Starting price: R340,000

5. Ford Ranger

• Units sold: 15,837
• Starting price: R349,390

6. Suzuki Swift

• Units sold: 15,277
• Starting price: R194,900

7. VW Polo

• Units sold: 14,332
• Starting price: R329,300

8. Toyota Corolla Cross

• Units sold: 14,021
• Starting price: R360,400

9. Nissan NP200

• Units sold: 12,141
• Starting price: R212,500

10. Toyota Starlet 

• Units sold: 11,885
• Starting price: R226,200