Utes dominate June sales charts

Khodrocar - Australia’s three most popular new vehicles in June - perennially the biggest sales month of the year - were all pickups/utes.

Clearly there were a lot of buyers taking advantage of end of financial year deals and incentives, and perhaps capitalising on certain tax breaks (such as fringe-benefit claims).

Top of the pops was the Toyota HiLux with 5787 units, ahead of the Ford Ranger on 4768. However, in the lucrative 4x4 ute sales race it was the Ford on top, 4236 versus 4032.

The other strong contender was the always-cheap Mitsubishi Triton, and credit goes to its maker for offering such bargains. Its 3919 June sales is just reward, given that’s more than even the Toyota Corolla managed (fourth overall with 3780).

It's not just the sales that are interesting, it's the model mix. Make no mistake, these aren't selling because they're cheap.

We know that the most popular HiLux and Ranger variants are the $50k-plus XLT and SR5 models, while 70 per cent of Amaroks were the expensive V6 flagships.

The vast majority of Navaras are ST and ST-X versions, and you're not getting a 70-Series LandCruiser ute for less than $70,000.

Overall, 4x2 and 4x4 utes had a combined market share of 19.4 per cent in June, more than any other vehicle type (medium SUVs were next on 18.1). Almost one-in-five new vehicle sold was a ute of some sort.

Source: Car Advice