Some of the best September figures in the past 10 years on display
Figures reflecting a boom 10 years ago tend to resemble business as usual in the growth stakes once they are seen again – and so September commercial vehicle sales figures should probably best be viewed.
This September’s total of 3,304 shades September 2008’s 3,252 by 52 vehicles, the latter recorded as the pre-GFC euphoria was at its height. Truck Industry Council (TIC) T-Mark figures show.
And it was the last time September recorded a total in the 3,000s.
Given the market remains in recovery phase, the year-to-date total this time around, unsurprisingly, is shy of 10 years ago – 26,294 against 27,535.
Month-on-month, the surge past 3,000 this year, begun in August and flagged in July, shows the second half of the calendar year accelerating.
For the lovers of big bangers, this return to historical form is reflected in the heavy-duty segments, where the 1,139 total is not only a record September for this decade but a record in at least a decade, being 93 units up on 2008’s 1,076.
Segment leader Kenworth misses record in a decade – 229 v. 263 – but second here is no mean feat and it retains a healthy 46 unit lead over closest rival Volvo after being headed in July.
Volvo, however, is breathing rarefied air at 183, a 10-year September record. And the same can be said of Isuzu’s 130, Mercedes-Benz’s 120, Scania’s 85, MAN’s 43, DAF’s 36 and UD’s 26.
The same is not quite the case for the medium-duty segment, with this September’s 666 not a patch on 208’s 880 . . . but it is the next best thing and skates over the August dip to put it in full-year record territory.
In the same vein, segment leader Isuzu’s 265 was behind on last September’s 285 and 2008’s 364 but only those, while Hino’s 193 failed to match only September 2015’s 235 and 2008’s 266.
Light-duty performance was similar to the heavy brigade, with last month’s 1,012, which may have been down 36 units on August but was still the first September in four figures, including 2008.
Top dog Isuzu’s 391 eased past next-best 2008’s 361 though it was down on August’s 425, with Hino’s 199, Fuso’s 187 and Mercedes-Benz’s 95 also in 10-year record territory.