MOTORING NEWS - Against a backdrop of declining new vehicle sales in South Africa, the Nissan brand is outperforming the rest.
Nissan South Africa reports it achieved its best sales and market share in over 10 years during August 2017.
The highlights are:
- 10,6% increase of market from a 7,5% low in 2014;
- Best light commercial vehicle (LCV) sales;
- Second place in market;
- Best passenger vehicle sales.
"We are thrilled with these results which reflect the strength and commitment of our sales and marketing teams," says Nissan SA sales and marketing director Xavier Gobille.
Driving the growth of passenger vehicles has been the excellent sales of the Nissan Almera and Datsun, which enjoyed respective growth of over 500% and 200%. Datsun, Nissan's entry-level offering, was reintroduced in South Africa in 2014.
In the LCV segment, where Nissan has established a formidable reputation, sales of the locally produced NP300 Hardbody and NP200 three-quarter ton bakkie, were up a combined 68%.
Complementing growth in the LCV segment was the new Nissan Navara where sales grew 250%.
"Our excellent performance gives us a solid platform for further growth in a domestic market which has been under considerable pressure in the last 18 months," says Gobille.
Sales of the new Nissan Navara grew 250%.
The National Association of Automobile Manufacturers' (Naamsa) second quarter review of the South African automotive industry released in August, reports that new vehicle sales remain under pressure and are likely to remain so for 2017, while exports have also declined.
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