Over a million new vehicles were bought in Oz in 2011 (recession, what recession?)!
Number 1 in the charts.... Mazda 3! (presumably the rental fleets took a few...)
2) Holden Commodore (begs the question would the Senator/Omega sell in UK if it was still available..?)
3) Toyota HiLux
4) Toyota Corolla
5) Holden Cruze (badged as a Chevy in the UK?)
6) Hyundai i30
7) Nissan Navara
8) Toyota Camry (assembled in Oz I believe)
9) Ford Falcon (!)
10) Mitsi Lancer (OMG what will Dog & Zeddo say..?!)
Bit different to the UK, eh?!
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>> 6) Hyundai i30
Available here. But very few sold.
Tons of i10, i20, ix35 and Elantras being sold though, and the new Accent has a months-long waiting lost.
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>> Bit different to the UK, eh?!
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I'm sorry to say this but it implies that the UK car buying population is a little more discerning perhaps ?
Having spent time in Oz this year, it is reminiscent of the US car market with perhaps even more gas-guzzling auto behemoths lumbering around e.g. petrol utes, the Commodore (aesthetically pleasing though it is) is mostly sold as a 3.0 V6 Auto or a V8, same for the Ford Falcon.
The Corolla (Auris) is perhaps an exception but I suspect that rental fleets account for many sales of it and its Camry sibling too.
OK, the 'distances' are greater but the car choice is a throw-back to a bygone age, unreconstructed, quaint even, but unsustainable. Didn't Holden almost suffer the same fate a Saab in GM's bankruptcy and I'm not sure that any Vauxhall/Ford rivalry is quite as tribal as Holden/Ford in Oz ?
Last edited by: idle_chatterer on Tue 10 Jan 12 at 05:12
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'I'm sorry to say this but it implies that the UK car buying population is a little more discerning perhaps ?'
The list of best sellers probably reflects the fact that the three largest manufacturers in Australia are (in no particular order) Ford, Holden and Toyota, and the closer proximity of Japan and Korea makes for easier exports to Australia - rather than any difference between Australian and UK consumers.
Holden wasn't in the brands that GM identidfied for sale or closure. Hummer, Opel/Vauxhall , Saturn and Saab were identified for sale. Pontiac and later Saturn were closed.
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Thoughts on a few of the entries.....
Mazda 3: I don't think that there are many in rental fleets. It just seems that Mazda has become a very popular car in Australia.
Toyota Corolla: Has improved its sales considerably but its success has been overshadowed by that of the Mazda.
Holden Cruze: Is now assembled locally. Not as good a car as the Astra it replaced though....
Hyundai i30: Appears to be catching on well. Maybe it will be higher up this year.
Toyota Camry: Has been assembled locally for about 20 years now.
Ford Falcon: Has seen declining sales for some time (more so than the Commodore) - maybe its near monopoly of the taxi market isn't going to be enough to save it.
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>> Over a million new vehicles were bought in Oz in 2011 (recession, what recession?)!
>>
>> Number 1 in the charts.... Mazda 3! (presumably the rental fleets took a few...)
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>> 2) Holden Commodore (begs the question would the Senator/Omega sell in UK if it was
>> still available..?)
A million new cars in a country wih a population of 22 million (give or take) is impressive! I think UK car sales are now down to about 1.8m, on a population roughly 3 times higher, but even at their peak were only around 2.2 million. They must wear them out quickly covering all those miles down there :-)
WRT to the Omega, I think the Insignia is probably as big if not bigger than the Omega ever was and, unfortunately, the Ford/Vauxhall badge is never going to do well when an Audi/BMW/MB can be leased for a similar amount
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>> A million new cars in a country wih a population of 22 million (give or
>> take) is impressive!
The Aussies are living in a mining for China boom. It wont be long before they have dug up the entire country and wont have any roads to drive on.
Always got a soft spot for Holdens, it was the first big (above three litres) v8 car I drove back in 83, huge fun on the Western Australian red tops. (dirt roads). If I could tho I would have a 2004 BA Ford Falcon XR6 shipped over here in a heart beat.
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>> 10) Mitsi Lancer (OMG what will Dog & Zeddo say..?!)
Zero Would say that at A$20,000 on the road (£13,300) its a bit of a bargain.
However one has to say that second hand prices down there are CRAZY
For example the exact twin of my car, A 2007 Lancer Estate, is currently on a NSW car traders lot priced at A$ 14,900. Thats 10 grand in real money, here it would be priced at 4-5k
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Opps i forgot, this one comes with the 2.3 litre VVT, Still the general principal remains, Aus used car prices are sky hi compared to ours.
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Wow! - I missed that, a Lancer in the top 10, wait til I tell 'the wife' :D
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Its the new model lancer dog.
Last edited by: Zero on Tue 10 Jan 12 at 09:59
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:( Doesn't really appeal to me for some reason, although I quite like Dom's Evo.
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Strange how it varies by country - Spain:
1 Seat Ibiza
2 Nissan Qashqai
3 Renault Megane
4 Seat Leon
5 VW Golf
6 VW Polo
7 Ford Focus
8 Peugeot 207
9 Opel Corsa
10 Opel Astra
Probably more a measure of where the manufacturers spend their marketing budgets, rather than the quality of the cars
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2011's best sellers Down Under - Ian (Cape Town)
