The Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) have released the new car sales figures for December 2019, marking the end of a turbulent year for the industry which saw new car sales drop by 7.8% year-on-year compared with 2018.

However, while overall sales figures witnessed a decline over the course of the year, 2019 saw positive growth from the electric and hybrid vehicle categories as they continue to make inroads into the new vehicle market.

With numerous manufacturers introducing new hybrid models into their Australian fleets over the last 12 months, the popularity of hybrid vehicles has increased drastically, with new vehicle sales increasing by 113.9% in 2019, from 14,328 in 2018 to 30,641 in 2019.

The growth in sales was led by the SUV private market, which sold 5,434 new vehicles sold, a 730.9% increase on the 2018 figure of 654.

The SUV non-private market also experienced strong growth, with 3,946 vehicles sold in 2019 compared to the 946 sold in 2018, a 317.1% improvement, showing the dominance of the SUV in today’s market.

Passenger hybrid vehicles also experienced improved sales in 2019, with vehicles including the Toyota Camry and Corolla as well as the Hyundai Ioniq proving to be popular.

Private passenger hybrid sales grew from 4,101 in 2018 to 6,786 in 2019 (up 65.5%), while passenger non-private sales grew 67.8% from 2018 to 2019, from 8,627 to 14,475.

In a rather interesting development, December saw hybrid passenger vehicles outsell diesels, with the latter selling 177 vehicles in the private market for the month compared to 683 hybrids and 387 diesel sales compared with 1,626 hybrids in the non-private category.

SUVs on the other hand are still predominantly petrol, with diesel coming in second and hybrids lagging behind in third.

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) sales returned a much more modest result in 2019, with the increasing rollout of charging infrastructure making the electric vehicle accessible to more consumers around the country.

Once again it was the SUV private sector that recorded the largest growth, with 798 total sales in 2019, up 309.2% from the 2018 figure of 195.

In the SUV non-private sector, 1,039 vehicles were sold compared to the 495 sold in 2018, good for a 109.9% increase.

The passenger private market soared 102% in 2019, from 245 vehicles in 2018 to 495, while the passenger non-private market grew 41.1% (401 to 566).

It is important to note that Tesla sales are not included in sales figures as they sell direct to market instead of through a dealership. With the recently released Model 3 proving to be a popular purchase in 2019, it can be assumed that actual sales of EVs were even higher than recorded.

With even more electric and hybrid models set to hit Australian shores this year, 2020 is looking like another big year for the growing category market.

Original source: Autotalk | Car Climate Change – Ice Melts

14 Jan 2020