VFACTSPage 17

Showrooms were closed in Melbourne for most of October for public health reasons, but if you take out the state of Victoria, the rest of Australia had a pretty positive October in new-car sales terms. It bodes well for the rest of 2020.

October was a month of rebound for the Australian new car market, with compact crossovers and SUVs accounting for more sales than small passenger cars.

Australia's new car market showing signs of recovery. SUVs take half the market total, while HiLux and Ranger top the charts. And watch out establishment, Chinese brands are booming.

From the Mazda CX-3 to the Mitsubishi ASX and Audi Q3, let's take a look at the Light and Small SUV sales race during 2020 so far.

Budget challenger brands MG, Haval, LDV, SsangYong, and Great Wall are among the small group of car makers to grow their Australian sales during a troubled 2020.

New car sales were down 22 per cent in September, with Victoria the site of predominant reductions. Ranger and HiLux topped the charts again, but annual overall sales are at their lowest point since 2002.

The market tumbles again, down 29 per cent to the worst August tally in 23 years. If the 'Toyota RAV4' was a standalone brand, it would've outsold Hyundai, Kia and Ford.

Which vehicles dominate their respective market segments? All of the cars in this list have market share of at least 40 per cent.

Hybrid and PHEV cars and SUVs owned more than 12 per cent market share in July, thanks in large part to Toyota.

After a promising June, the premium brands struggled during the month of July – though there were a handful of exceptions.

The Australian car market is struggling in 2020, but a number of Chinese brands continue to grow their sales.

Toyota's mid-sized SUV topped the charts in July as supply finally improves. About 80 per cent of all those sold and delivered were hybrids.

Today's Australia-wide sales data shows new vehicle sales dipped 13 per cent in July 2020, with the lion's share of that drop coming from Victoria. Toyota's RAV4 was easily the top-selling vehicle.

Cheap and cheerful new cars are nowhere near as popular as they used to be. The numbers are eye-opening.

Winner and losers. The Toyota RAV4 posts the biggest growth, and the Mazda 3 the biggest decline. Plus an electric car grows at the highest percentage rate. What cars sit between the bookends?

Medium SUVs are now the most-popular vehicle type in Australia. Which ones top the charts, which are battling for traction, and what new choices are coming?