New Zealand Company Vehicle Buyer’s Guide for 2017

New Zealand vehicle buyers didn’t quite manage to push through the 150,000 barrier in terms of new vehicle sales for 2016, but it came very close indeed, and if the records continue to tumble that will be the next one to go. As it happened we ended the year on 146,753 registrations during the year, an impressive 9.5 percent up on the 2015 total of 134,041, the third record year in a row. The year 2016 also gave us another phenomenon; for the first time SUV sales exceeded the sum total of ALL cars, from compact right through to luxury. SUVS made up 36 percent of the market (52,913 vehicles) compared to 35 percent for all other passenger vehicles (51,552), and 29 percent for commercial vehicles. And what a fight in the light commercial sector. As mentioned above, the ute, or pickup, market continues to grow apace, and at the top of the tree it was a straight fight between the Ford Ranger and the Toyota Hilux, with even the massive changes Holden has made to the Colorado not able to get more than a foot in the door. Looking at the overall market, Toyota continues to lead on 18 percent, followed by Ford on 11 percent, and Holden on 10 percent.

Here’s the top 15 chart: 1 Toyota 26,785 18% 2 Ford 16,763 11% 3 Holden 14,337 10% 4 Mazda 11,219 8% 5 Mitsubishi 9,251 6% 6 Nissan 8,626 6% 7 Hyundai 8,376 6% 8 Suzuki 5,311 4% 9 Kia 5,287 4% 10 Volkswagen 5,092 3% 11 Honda 3,955 3% 12 Mercedes-benz 3,436 2% 13 Subaru 2,660 2% 14 Isuzu 2,640 2% 15 Ssangyong 2,363 2%

It’s good to see Mercedes-benz in the top 12 as leading luxury brand, a tribute, perhaps, to its wide range and tight pricing, and even more interesting to see Ssangyong in the top 15 against bigger and more established brands, a reward here, we think for hard work and perseverance. Now let’s have a look at which models sell most. In terms of passenger cars, the Toyota Corolla continues to be No. 1, with six percent of the market. It’s followed by the Toyota rav4 – which is therefore the most popular SUV, on four percent, and the Kia Sportage, on three percent.

Here’s the top 15 in that segment: 1 Toyota Corolla 6,274 6% 2 Toyota RAV4 3,612 4% 3 Kia Sportage 3,061 3% 4 Mazda CX-5 2,841 3% 5 Hyundai Tucson 2,650 3% 6 Suzuki Swift 2,570 3% 7 Mazda Mazda3 2,472 2% 8 Holden Commodore 2,455 2% 9 Toyota Yaris 2,376 2% 10 Holden Captiva 2,288 2% 11 Hyundai Santa Fe 2,062 2% 12 Nissan X-trail 2,059 2% 13 Mitsubishi Outlander 2,019 2% 14 Toyota Highlander 1,989 2% 15 Nissan Qashqai 1,790 2% Again, interesting statistics. The Kia is a big surprise, but it’s been gaining ground steadily throughout the year on the back of keen pricing on a great product. Last year the Holden Commodore was third overall; a sobering thought, and an indication of how quickly things can change. Nevertheless, the Commodore soldiers on in eighth place overall, as it heads towards the end of production and the demise of the great rear-wheel drive Australian dream. The Mazda CX-5 is finding more and more buyers from the fleet sector; the Suzuki Swift, too, is keeping its head up, having elevated up the ladder from ninth overall last year And now we get to the commercial sector. Last year we saw a lot of movement from the medium to heavy truck segment, but this seems to have eased a little; that said, truck replacement is not on the same timescale as for passenger vehicles and light commercials, so that’s in a way to be expected. As mentioned earlier, the Ford Ranger came out as top seller, with a massive 19 percent of the sector, followed by the Toyota Hilux on 14 percent, and the Holden Colorado on eight percent.

Here’s the top 15 tally: 1 Ford Ranger 8,478 19% 2 Toyota Hilux 6,187 14% 3 Holden Colorado 3,739 8% 4 Mitsubishi Triton 3,182 7% 5 Nissan Navara 3,093 7% 6 Toyota Hiace 2,598 6% 7 Isuzu D-max 2,386 5% 8 Mazda BT-50 1,814 4% 9 Hyundai iload 1,009 2% 10 Ssangyong Actyon Sport 903 2% 11 Mercedes-benz Sprinter 820 2% 12 Fiat Ducato 793 2% 13 Ford Transit 772 2% 14 Volkswagen Amarok 673 2% 15 LDV V80 585 1%

The parameters

And now to the 2017 Nz company-vehicle Fleet Guide. As with previous years we have had to place limits on what makes it into the Guide, and this means limits have been placed on the listings. As such, there’s no listing for overtly sporty cars, convertibles, or any vehicle that is priced above our Executive Car cut-off of $75,000. And finally, although we have tried very hard to get latest prices and specifications ahead of our publishing date, please confirm these with your local dealer before making any final decisions.