Has the Toyota Hilux managed to grab back the top spot? Let’s take a closer at South Africa’s best- and worst-selling bakkies for May 2023…
South Africa’s new-vehicle industry registered 10.1% of year-on-year growth in May 2023, finishing the month on 43 060 units. The light-commercial vehicle (LCV) segment provided much of this momentum, with sales in that sector of the market increasing a significant 38.5% year on year to 12 825 units.
Question is, after being relegated to an unfamiliar 2nd place in April 2023, did the Toyota Hilux manage to regain the top spot on the list of South Africa’s best-selling bakkies in May 2023? It did indeed, with the popular Prospecton-produced pick-up racking up 2 798 registrations across the country.
Shedding 97 units month on month, the Silverton-built Ford Ranger thus dropped a position to 2nd, registering 2 104 sales in May. Our calculations (based on Naamsa data) show the Hilux is some way ahead in the year-to-date sales race, with its tally sitting at 15 009 units. The Ranger, meanwhile, has garnered 9 627 sales up until the end of May.
But back to last month’s figures. The Isuzu D-Max again completed the bakkie podium, with the Struandale-manufactured range (including the Gen 6 line-up) attracting 1 555 registrations in May 2023. For the record, the D-Max’s year-to-date total stands at 8 047 units, which puts it 1 580 units behind the Ranger. As an aside, the new the D-Max Arctic Trucks AT35 is expected to be added to the range relatively soon.
The market’s only half-tonne bakkie, the Rosslyn-made Nissan NP200, remained in 4th in May thanks to its 1 157 sales, while the Mahindra Pik Up (639 units) likewise held steady in 5th. Having nearly doubled its April effort, the GWM P-Series (494 units) moved up a couple of spots to 6th.
That saw the evergreen Toyota Land Cruiser 79 (371 units) – which appears to be in line for 4-cylinder power towards the end of the year – and the Ford-built Volkswagen Amarok (330 units) each slip a position to 7th and 8th, respectively. The Nissan Navara (318 units) managed to hold onto 9th, while the GWM Steed returned to the table, with 99 registrations.
Best of the rest in May 2023: bakkies outside top 10
So, what about those bakkies that didn’t crack the top 10? Well, the Mitsubishi Triton (which will soon gain an AT35 derivative, too) dropped off the table, with 53 units registered in May. The Mahindra Bolero added 37 sales for the Indian firm, while JAC’s T-badged bakkies – the Chinese automaker unfortunately reports only a combined figure for its T6 and T8 line-ups – finished May 2023 on a total of 35 units.
The Peugeot Landtrek was next on 23 registrations, with its Stellantis stablemate, the Jeep Gladiator, following with 13 sales. The Mazda BT-50 had to settle for the final spot, with just 8 units sold (its best performance so far this year).
Export winners in the bakkie segment in May 2023
What about the bakkie export market? Well, the Ford Ranger led the charge on this front, with 6 274 units shipped from the Blue Oval brand’s Silverton facility in May 2023. Though it’s not clear, we suspect this total includes Amarok units built in the same factory, as Volkswagen shows no exports of this model in its reported figures. The meant the Toyota Hilux slipped to 2nd on the export charts in May, with 5 323 units sent overseas.
Meanwhile, the D-Max (630 units), Navara (451 units) and NP200 (31 units) again made up the numbers on the export charts. As has been the case for a few months, the official Naamsa report furthermore showed a handful of imported models being exported from local shores in May 2023, this time in the form of the Triton (56 units), P-Series (15 units) and Steed (1 unit).
10 best-selling bakkies in South Africa for May 2023
1. Toyota Hilux – 2 798 units
2. Ford Ranger – 2 104 units
3. Isuzu D-Max – 1 555 units
4. Nissan NP200 – 1 157 units
5. Mahindra Pik Up – 639 units
6. GWM P-Series – 494 units
7. Toyota Land Cruiser 79 – 371 units
8. Volkswagen Amarok – 330 units
9. Nissan Navara – 318 units
10. GWM Steed – 99 units
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