Big jump in new vehicle sales

Out of the total reported industry sales of 50,920 vehicles, 45,938 represented dealer sales 3,8% represented sales to the vehicle rental industry, 2,1% to government and 3,9 % to industry corporate fleets.

During April 34,346 new cars were sold which represents an improvement of 4,830 units or a gain of 16,4% compared to the 29,516 new cars sold in April last year. New light commercial vehicles, bakkies and mini bus sales of 14,045 units reflected an increase of 3,038 units or 27,6% compared to the corresponding month last year.

Industry sources said the momentum of vehicle exports was expected to continue improving and particularly exports of light commercial vehicles should increase substantially during 2013.

On the back of growth in industry new vehicle exports, industry production was projected to register strong growth in 2013.

Ford out-performs industry

While the SA car market showed impressive growth, Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa (FMCSA) continued to out-perform the industry as it posted more than 5,000 sales.

Ford commanded double-digit market share once again, the brand's highest share since December 2005. Volumes are up 44,5% year-on-year in an industry up 19,5%, while year-to-date sales displayed an equally promising Ford picture, up 30,7% when industry sales grew 7,5%.

Ford Ranger continued to sustain demand off last month's all-time record sales with 1,787 units sold, the second-best month for Ranger sales since launch. Sales of Fiesta and Figo maintained their strength with 718 and 1,163 units respectively.