Toyota South Africa Motors (TSAM) has started to bounce back to pre-flood sales figures, posting a total of 11, 138 units for the month of August. The company’s latest sales are 4, 028 units up compared to July, and have certainly been propped up by the resumption of operations at the Prospecton Plant in Durban, albeit it still in the ramp-up phase.
“The resilience of the Toyota brand in South Africa was put to the test when production ceased for a few months following the devastating floods that caused damage to our plant in Durban. We are truly pleased to have models such as Hilux, Hiace, Fortuner, Corolla Cross and Quest rolling off the production line.
“However, we still have an extensive backlog of orders that we have to clear, and we continue to ask for patience on the part of our customers. There is indeed light at the end of the tunnel,” says Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing at TSAM, Leon Theron.
While TSAM did not lose its sales leadership position when its plant closed for repairs, it is the first time since April that SA’s favourite vehicle is once again topping the sales charts. A total of 3, 417 Hilux models found new homes in August; while 1, 129 Corolla Cross; 1, 008 Hiace Ses’fikile and 667 Fortuner units were sold.
Reflecting on industry sales for the month of August, the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (naamsa) says: “The new vehicle market’s performance remained remarkably buoyant despite the increasingly challenging economic conditions. Aggregate domestic new vehicles sales at 47, 420 units reflected an increase of 5, 887 units or 14,2% from 41, 533 vehicles sold in August 2021.”
Other notable performers in the Toyota stable include Urban Cruiser (1, 905), Starlet (774) and Agya (377), while the brand’s luxury arm Lexus posted a total of 64 units. These include 20 NX models, 12 RX and 10 LX and UX – respectively. On the truck front, Hino 300-Series sold 109 units while a total of 110 models of 500-Series were retailed. TSAM is also proud that it supplied no less than 1,4 million-part pieces to its domestic dealer network, while a further 290,000 pieces were shipped outside of the country.
“With a total market share of 23.5%, we are truly proud of our Dealer Network and can only encourage them to continue creating customer smiles and never to be complacent. Additionally, we appreciate the sterling efforts of our fleet owners and car rental companies for their continued support and loyalty.
“We are also grateful to the Toyota family – including colleagues at the plant as well as our sales and marketing teams across the country – for their relentless efforts in making ours the brand of choice. We could not have asked for more from our customers, staff as well as our dealers across Southern Africa,” concludes Theron.
ENDS
