With Toyota’s Prospecton factory still shuttered, the Hilux lost the crown of South Africa’s best-selling bakkie in May 2022. Here’s a closer look at the segment’s sales figures…
There haven’t been too many months over the past few decades when the Toyota Hilux wasn’t South Africa’s best-selling bakkie. May 2022, however, was one such instance. Of course, there’s an obvious reason for that, with April’s deadly KwaZulu-Natal floods also extensively damaging Toyota’s Prospecton factory, resulting in the facility remaining offline throughout May 2022.
With production of models such as the aforementioned Hilux and the likewise strong-selling Hi-Ace having temporarily ceased, South African sales of new light-commercial vehicles in May 2022 plunged 22.6% year on year to just 9 221 units, despite the overall new-vehicle industry growing 2.1% year on year to 39 177 units.
So, let’s take a closer look at what this means for the composition of the top 10 in May 2022. Despite the fact the Blue Oval brand is gearing up to launch an all-new model later in the year, the outgoing Ford Ranger was the top-selling bakkie last month with 1 548 units registered across the country. The Silverton-built pick-up added more than 400 units to its April tally, moving up one place in the process.
Despite not a single Hilux rolling off the local production line in May, the Japanese bakkie still managed to place second with 1 368 units sold (what June will look like, however, remains to be seen as stock issues will likely intensify for Toyota). The new Isuzu D-Max moved up one spot to third, though it seems its final figure of 1 163 units includes both the latest-generation model and the prolonged lifecycle version badged as the Gen 6.
That means the Nissan NP200 (1 066 units) dropped one place to fourth, despite crossing into four figures in May. The Mahindra Pik Up (688 units) and Nissan Navara (461 units) likewise enjoyed stronger month-on-month performances, retaining their respective fifth and sixth rankings.
Meanwhile, the GWM Steed (368 units) swapped spots with the GWM P-Series (327 units), with the evergreen Toyota Land Cruiser 79 (294 units) and outgoing Volkswagen Amarok (208 units) again closing out the table. It’s interesting to note every bakkie in the top 10 bar the Hilux grew its sales figure month on month in May.
Best of the rest in May 2022
Right, that’s the big dogs out the way, but what about the so-called bit-part players? Well, as is so often the case, the Mahindra Bolero (95) was the best of the rest in May 2022, while the Mitsubishi Triton was next on 62 units (a single unit down on its April performance). The JAC T8 managed 34 units, with the JAC T6 settling for eight registrations. The Peugeot Landtrek dipped to 28 units, while Mazda managed to register just 19 examples of its D-Max-based BT-50. Interestingly, a single Jeep Gladiator was also registered in South Africa in May, ahead of the model’s long-awaited local launch.
Export winners in May 2022
Ford exported 5 368 units of the Ranger in May, quite some way ahead of the Isuzu D-Max (499 units) and Nissan Navara (482 units). Toyota’s Hilux export figure, meanwhile, tumbled to just 123 units, again thanks to the lack of local production. Finally, the Nissan NP200 (34) made up the numbers.
10 best-selling bakkies in South Africa for May 2022
1. Ford Ranger – 1 548 units
2. Toyota Hilux – 1 368 units
3. Isuzu D-Max – 1 163 units
4. Nissan NP200 – 1 066 units
5. Mahindra Pik Up – 688 units
6. Nissan Navara – 461 units
7. GWM Steed – 368 units
8. GWM P-Series – 327 units
9. Toyota Land Cruiser 79 – 294 units
10. Volkswagen Amarok – 208 units
