Sales of new trucks in Australia in the first quarter of this year outstripped the previous record year of 2018 by 142 vehicles
New truck sales are booming, with a new first quarter record reached of 8,817 trucks and vans sold year to date (YTD), according to Truck Industry Council data. This is an increase of 492 over 2021’s first quarter and even outstrips the previous record-busting year of 2018 by 142 vehicles.
In March alone, 3,797 trucks were delivered to customers – an increase of 239 trucks on March 2021. All three sectors have showed growth compared to the same time last year but it’s the heavy-duty sector that’s the one to keep an eye on as we move into the second quarter, with an increase of 23.6 per cent on last year.
HEAVY-DUTY
March saw a total of 1,245 heavy-duty trucks delivered, up 216 units on February’s total and 210 trucks ahead of March 2021. With March 2018 sitting at 1,174, this is looking very promising. The heavy-duty sector now sits at 3,012 units delivered YTD.
Kenworth kept its commanding lead in March with 271 deliveries, up 45 on February to reach a total of 647 YTD and comfortably ahead of its March 2021 total of 222. Isuzu took second place with 186, up nine on February and a significant increase on March 2021’s figure of 102. This brought Isuzu to 490 YTD, while third place Volvo saw an increase of 16 on February’s total to reach 177 and manage a YTD of 447.
Mack took over fourth place for March with 90 units – a sizable increase on February’s 52 – while UD Trucks tucked itself into fifth with 70, up from 55 the previous month. Mercedes-Benz, despite selling 11 more than February, was pushed down the rankings with a total of 69, with DAF (60), Scania (59), Hino (58) and Fuso (57) providing a tidy run through the middle of the pack.
Of the rest, MAN’s total of 36 saw it double its March 2021 total of 18, while Dennis Eagle unfortunately took a plunge down to one after last March’s 15.
MEDIUM-DUTY
The medium-duty segment again provided solid sales, with a March total of 686 trucks delivered, up 84 units on March 2021 and a notable increase of 142 units on the previous month. This brings the segment total to 1,651 YTD, up 189 trucks on 2021 first quarter sales, if a bit behind 2018’s first quarter result of 1,768.
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March 2022 saw Isuzu maintain a sizeable lead with 295 deliveries – 47 ahead of its February total – to bring it to 753 YTD. This a growth of 179 units compared to the first quarter of 2021. Hino remains second with a March 2022 total of 228, up 56 units on the previous month and squeaking just ahead of its March 2021 total of 222. Third place Fuso is also up on February’s total with 121 deliveries and is also running slightly ahead of March 2021’s 115.
Numbers drop sharply from this point, with UD Trucks in fourth on 15 and the remaining eight medium-duty manufacturers all under 10 units.
LIGHT-DUTY
Light-duty truck sales remain strong, over double that of the medium-duty sector and 127 ahead of the heavy-duty sector, with a March 2022 total of 1,428. This is an increase of 197 light-duty trucks sold on March last year. The segment sits up 248 trucks YTD compared to 2021, with a total of 3,219.
Isuzu is too hot to touch with 576 deliveries in March – a massive 350 unit increase on March 2021 and a YTD of 1,207 over double that of last year. This was also a significant increase of 230 units on its February total, making it clearly the one to watch. Hino is starting to pull away in second with a March total of 329 units compared to Fuso’s 257 in third, though both show significant growth on March 2021’s 222 and 115 totals, respectively.
Iveco retains fourth place with 97 – a huge increase on its March 2021 total of 13 and an increase of 35 units on its February 2022 result. The middle of the pack is looking a lot healthier than last year, with Fiat also bringing 66 units and Mercedes-Benz bringing 52 to the total.