Let’s look at December 2022’s sales figures and pick out South Africa’s best- and worst-selling bakkies for the final month of the year…
South Africa’s new-vehicle market grew 16.2% year on year to 41 783 units in December 2022 , while the light-commercial vehicle segment (where volume is driven primarily by bakkies) ended the final month of the year on 10 438 registrations, representing similar year-on-year growth of 16.1%.
For the record, December’s light-commercial figure is 22.5% down on November’s effort , which was clearly reflected in the individual model sales figures, with only one bakkie managing to improve its tally month on month.
The Prospecton-produced Toyota Hilux retained its position at the sharp end of the list of South Africa’s best-selling bakkies, with 2 556 examples registered in December 2022. Despite the Silverton-built Ford Ranger’s transition to a new generation (and the fact only double-cab variants of the fresh-faced model became available locally in December), the Blue Oval bakkie hung onto second place with 1 495 units, well ahead of the Struandale-manufactured Isuzu D-Max (1 183 units).
Though the Nissan NP200 (718 units) dropped into three figures, the Rosslyn-built half-tonner retained fourth place. The Mahindra Pik Up (460 units) and Nissan Navara (356 units) likewise held steady in fifth and sixth, respectively.
As the only bakkie to grow its sales tally compared with November’s effort, the evergreen Toyota Land Cruiser 79 (314 units) climbed two positions to seventh, meaning the GWM P-Series (292 units) and GWM Steed (279 units) each fell a spot to eighth and ninth, respectively. With 115 units registered, the outgoing Volkswagen Amarok again completed the top 10.
Best of the rest in December 2022
So, what about those models that didn’t manage to crack the top 10? Well, the Mitsubishi Triton was again the best of the rest in December 2022, with 77 units registered. Next came the Mahindra Bolero (32 units) and Peugeot Landtrek (28 units), followed by the Jeep Gladiator (20 units).
JAC’s T-badged bakkies (the Chinese automaker reports a combined figure for the recently expanded T6 and T8 line-ups) grew to 56 units, while Mazda could find homes for a mere four new examples of the BT-50 .
Export winners in December 2022
After playing second fiddle to the Hilux on the export charts in November, the Ford Ranger returned to the top spot in December 2022, with 5 553 units shipped from local shores. The Hilux (3 152 units) was next, with the Nissan Navara (328 units), Isuzu D-Max (188 units) and Nissan NP200 (94 units) making up the export numbers.
Interestingly, the official Naamsa report shows 74 examples of the Mitsubishi Triton were also exported from SA in the final month of 2022 (nearly as many as were registered locally), along with 14 units of the likewise imported GWM P-Series and a single example of the Steed.
10 best-selling bakkies in South Africa for December 2022
1. Toyota Hilux – 2 556 units
2. Ford Ranger – 1 495 units
3. Isuzu D-Max – 1 183 units
4. Nissan NP200 – 718 units
5. Mahindra Pik Up – 460 units
6. Nissan Navara – 356 units
7. Toyota Land Cruiser 79 – 314 units
8. GWM P-Series – 292 units
9. GWM Steed – 279 units
10. Volkswagen Amarok – 115 units
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10 best-selling bakkies in South Africa: November 2022
