By Malusi Msomi

Toyota South Africa Motors (TSAM) has started the 2023 retail calendar with a strong performance, selling a total of 12,532 units in January. This accounts for a remarkable 28.8% market share out of the 43,509 units sold in South Africa, making Toyota the leading brand in the Passenger, Light Commercial, and Medium Commercial vehicle segments.

Hilux and Hiace dominate LCV

In the Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV) segment, the Hilux and Hiace models maintained their dominance with 2,769 and 1,257 units sold respectively. The Corolla Cross and Starlet models led the passenger segment with 2,042 and 2,037 units sold, while the Urban Cruiser and Fortuner SUVs posted sales of 839 and 710 units respectively. The Land Cruiser duo of LC 300 and Prado models also performed well with 308 and 162 units sold each. The luxury brand Lexus sold 51 models in January.

TSAM’s truck division Hino also had a strong start to the year with a retail total of 209 units, including 101 models of the 500 Series, 68 models of the 300 Series, and 40 units of the 200 Series.

Market resurgence

Commenting on the January sales, the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (naamsa) said that aggregate domestic new vehicle sales in January 2023 increased by 4.8% from the previous year. The new passenger car market also saw a gain of 2.9% compared to the previous year. Domestic sales of new light commercial vehicles increased by 10.4% from the previous year.

Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing at TSAM, Leon Theron says: “The incredible loyalty shown by our customers over more than six decades has enabled us to achieve an outstanding share of the local market. We are thankful to our fleet owners and rental companies for their continued support in these trying economic times. We are also grateful to our Dealer Network, as well as all Toyota staff, for their sterling efforts in making Toyota such a competitive brand.”