South Africa's top-selling SUVs and crossovers

South Africa's passenger car market saw encouraging growth in November, rising to 35,101 units for a 20% gain over the same month last year.

As usual, the biggest market segment was crossovers and SUVs, reflecting a change in lifestyle needs as consumers shift away from sedans to vehicles with a greater ground clearance and better perceived practicality.

Last month the segment was again led by the Toyota Corolla Cross which sold 2,655 units. The locally built car has been a big success since its launch in 2021 and last month it outsold the next best-selling SUV, the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro, by more than double.

Chery also had the Tiggo 7 Pro in the top 20, in a segment that has an increasing number of Chinese players including Haval and more recently Omoda.

The Toyota Fortuner continues to defy trends by being a large SUV that not only dominates its market niche but also outsells many smaller and cheaper crossovers. It sold 872 units last month compared with its chief rival, the Ford Everest (282). Toyota is the country’s best-selling brand with a nearly 25% market share and had four vehicles in the top 20 SUV/crossover sellers last month.

The Mahindra 3X0, Hyundai Exter and Toyota Starlet Cross are affordable new entrants to the compact crossover market that have resonated with buyers. The Exter took over from the larger Venue as Hyundai’s most popular crossover.

A standout performer was Kia’s recently updated Sonet which had an excellent month with more than 1,000 units sold, aided by the launch of the new LS entry-level model.