WHILE car manufacturers were popping champagne corks to celebrate a record year for the Australian market, the news was not as good for the two- and three-wheel brigades.
Sales data released by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) showed motorcycle and off-highway vehicles (OHV) were both down more than 3% on 2022.
Tony Weber, Chief Executive of the FCAI, said while the record years for cars was good news, there were a range of factors impacting the sales of motorcycles and OHVs.
"This extraordinary result is a testament to the adaptability and resilience of both industry players and consumers alike. Despite the supply chain disruptions faced in recent times, consumers now have greater access to a broad range of choices, fostering increased accessibility in the market," said Mr. Weber.
Rising interest rates and cost of living pressures contributed to the decline in overall sales for 2023, Mr Weber said, compared to the buoyant car market.
"As Australians manage tighter finances, recreational products are often the first to be affected.
"Recreational products, including motorcycles, often bear the brunt of financial constraints during challenging periods. The decrease in motorcycle sales underscores the impact of economic pressures on discretionary spending.
On the car side of the ledger, Ford returned to the top of the sales sheets in 2023, with strong demand for the Ranger utility leading the Blue Oval charge.
While the Ranger out-performed the competition, the same cannot be said for other Ford products, the commercial range making up around 75% of Ford's total sales, with the Mustang coupe the only other product to challenge for segment leadership.
How Ford, once a leader in many Australian market segments, will react to the underwhelming sales performance of vehicles like the Focus, Fiesta and Puma remains to be seen in 2024.
Despite the Ranger claiming the top selling vehicle crown, on the back of 63,356 sales, Toyota asserted its overall market dominance, selling a combined total of 215,240 vehicles, more than double the result of second-placed Mazda's 100,008 sales.
The interesting sidebar to this result is Toyota's leadership, in a record market year, actually saw the company's year-on-year total reduce by almost 16,000 units, down from 2022's figure of 231,050.
Other top-10 performers were Ford (87,800 - 3rd), KIA (76,120 - 4th), Hyundai (75,183 - 5th), Mitsubishi (63,511 - 6th), MG (58,346 - 7th), Tesla (46,116 - 8th), Subaru (46,114 - 9th) and Isuzu Ute (45,341 - 10th).
Tesla's performance, along with Chinese manufacturer BYD recording 12,438 sales - a massive jump from their 2022 result of 2,113 - showed a change in consumer preference, with many 'traditional' manufacturers struggling to keep up.
Also interesting was China's improved overall result as a vehicle manufacturing nation, finishing the year as the third-largest supplier to the Australian market with 193,433, behind Japan (345,071) and Thailand (264,253).
China's result came at the expense of South Korea, which exported a total of 161,614 vehicles to Australia, although an improvement over the 2022 figure, it was not enough to hold a place in the top three.
Supply chain issues continue to plague many manufacturers, with many popular nameplates experiencing long lead times for customers, which can impact purchasing decisions as buyers choose an 'available' make or model over their preferred option rather than face a lengthy delay.
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