New car registrations were sightly down year on year in April but the market overall remained steady, according to Motor Industry Association (MIA) data.
“April new vehicle registrations of 10,423 vehicles were down 2 per cent (212 units) on April 2017 reflecting a stable market," said MIA CEO David Crawford.
"Year to date the market is marginally up by 1.4% (704 units) compared to the first four months of 2017.”
"Registrations of 6,848 passenger and SUV vehicles for the month of April were down 2.1 per cent (148 units) on April 2017 and registrations of 3,575 commercial vehicles was marginally down by 1.8% (64 units) on April 2017.”
Toyota, who launched a new 'haggle free' pricing policy in April, remains New Zealand's new car market leader with 13 per cent market share (1310 units), followed by Ford with 11 per cent (1115 units) and Mazda with 9 per cent market share (893 units).
Mazda was the market leader for passenger and SUV registrations with 11 per cent market share (760 units) followed by Toyota with 10 per cent (712 units) and Holden with 8% market share (540 units).
Ford regained the market lead in the commercial sector with 22 per cent market share (803 units) followed by Toyota with 17 per cent (598 units) and Holden with 9 per cent market share (312 units).
Four of the top five selling models for the month of April were light commercial vehicles with the Mazda CX-5 splitting the list in third spot. The Ford Ranger was back at the top of the bestselling vehicle model table with 745 units, followed by the Toyota Hilux with 457 units and the Mazda CX-5 with 317 units.
The top five segments were all light commercial vehicles and SUV’s, reflecting the ongoing popularity of these vehicles. The Pick Up/Chassis Cab 4x4 segment came in as the top segment for the month of April with 15 per cent market share, closely followed by the SUV Medium segment also with 15 per cent.
“The market for new vehicles remains at historically high levels with registrations underpinned by a range of economic factors. Net immigration, while reducing is still elevated based on long term trends, new vehicle prices remain competitive and the economy is stable” said Crawford.
Total Vehicle Sales by Model - April 2018
| Marque and Model | Sales |
| Ford Ranger | 745 |
| Toyota Hilux | 457 |
| Mazda CX-5 | 317 |
| Holden Colorado | 306 |
| Nissan Navara | 268 |
| Mitsubishi Triton | 258 |
| Suzuki Swift | 245 |
| Kia Sportage | 220 |
| Isuzu D-MAX | 205 |
| Holden Captiva | 199 |
| Nissan Qashqai | 186 |
| Toyota Corolla | 170 |
| Honda Jazz | 161 |
| Mazda Mazda3 | 160 |
| Subaru Outback | 145 |
-Driven