VFacts Feb 05

[RPO83]

Highlights:

The February 2005 industry volume of 81,009, sets a new record for a February month, and is up, 5,132 vehicles or 6.8% on February 2004 (75,877 vehicles). February 2005 had the same number of selling days as February (24.0) 2004, resulting in an increase of 213.8 vehicles per day.
The February 2005 market is up 11,444 (16.5%) on January (69,565 vehicles). February (24.0) had same number of selling days as January (24.0), resulting in an increase of 476.8 vehicles per day.
The Passenger Vehicle Market increased by 2,769 vehicles (5.8%) over the same month last year, the Sports Utility Vehicle Market, increased by 2,613 (20.3%), and whilst the Light Truck Market, fell by 398 vehicles (-3.0%) the Heavy Commercial Vehicle Market increased by 148 vehicles (7.3%) over February 2004.
Holden was market leader in February, followed by Toyota and Ford. Year To Date Toyota lead Holden with a margin of 1,260 vehicle sales, or 0.8 market share points.


Ford
Ford Courier 4X2 258
Ford Courier 4X4 347
Ford Escape 366
Ford Explorer 40
Ford F250 4X4 238
Ford Transit 137
Ford Falcon 4650
Ford Falcon Ute 1598
Ford Fiesta 395
Ford Focus 892
Ford Fairlane 124
Ford LTD 8
Ford Territory 2072
TOTAL Ford 11182

Holden
Holden Adventra 138
Holden Astra 3136
Holden Barina 880
Holden Caprice 75
Holden Commodore 5890
Holden Jackaroo 1
Holden Monaro 216
Holden Rodeo 4X2 1121
Holden Rodeo 4X4 982
Holden Statesman 253
Holden Utility 4X2 1558
Holden Utility 4X4 59
TOTAL Holden 15193

Mazda
Mazda2 473
Mazda3 3027
Mazda6 1376
TOTAL Mazda 6111

Mitsubishi
Mistsubishi Colt 378
Mitsubishi Lancer 941
Mitsubishi Magna 1518
Mitsubish Pajero 579
TOTAL Mitsubish 5334

Toyota
Toyotoa Avalon 370
Toyota Camry 4cyl 2247
Toyota Camry V6 938
Toyota Corolla 2691
Toyota Echo 1697
Toyota Kluger 603
Toyota Landcruiser Wagon 1218
Toyota Prado 1422
Toyota RAV4 1069
TOTAL Toyota 15130


Stay tuned for comprehensive stats by russellw.

[MethodX]

Holden beat Atoyot

good news, good news.
All we nee now is for Ford to beat toyota and life will b seet.

[Smoke Pursuit]

The new model Focus should increase Focus sales by 300 a month hopefully...

Falcon Sedans still a bit on the lowside and Fairlane is a JOKE, its going to be a even BIGGER JOKE once everyone sees the new Series II thats coming out this month....

[JR.]

The official press release...


Ford Australia has celebrated its best start to a sales year since 1990 after selling more than 20,000 vehicles in the first two months.

With a total of 20,304 vehicle sales to the end of February, Ford has broken through the 20,000 unit mark for the first time in 15 years.

Record sales from a number of SUV and Light Truck product lines contributed to the company also recording its best February sales result since 1995.

Ford sold 11,182 vehicles for the month, an increase of 677 units or 6.4 per cent compared to February last year, with Territory, Escape, Courier and F-Series key contributors.

Total Ford SUV sales set a new February record with 2,478 SUV models sold, establishing an outright SUV sales record for the company in the process.

"Sales of Territory were up by 41 per cent on the previous month for a total of 2,072 sales, while Escape produced its best February performance on record with 366 sales," Ford Australia President Tom Gorman said.

"The high level of customer interest in Territory that was reported by our dealers throughout January, in conjunction with a solid forward order bank, has translated into the second best Territory sales result since it entered the market last June.

"Territory's February figure was only just shy of the all time record month achieved last December and comes just a few weeks after it was awarded Wheels Magazine Car of the Year for 2004, so it's another fantastic result for the Territory brand.

"In the Light truck sector, the Courier range also continues to perform strongly with total Courier sales up by over 29 per cent year on year."

Ford sold 347 Courier 4x4 models, which is a February record, while 256 sales of Courier 4x2 models represents the best February result since 2000.

"Another highlight amongst Ford's light truck line-up was the record month for the F-Series range with 256 sales," Mr Gorman said.

"Falcon Ute was also a key contributor to the overall result with sales up by over 38 per cent on last month's figures for a total of 1,538 sales.

"Fiesta recorded 395 sales, bringing the running total for its first 12 months on the market to 4,809 sales, which represents a four-year high for a Ford Australia model in the Light Car segment."

Ford also sold 4,650 Falcon models during February, contributing to total Passenger sales of 6,069 vehicles.

"Our combined January and February sales figures highlight the strength, quality and diversity of our current product range," Mr Gorman said.

[tickford2001]

thanks once again for the figures luke!

good to see the falcon ute back on top too

and good news that holden has taken the title back off toyota....

[RPO83]

Originally Posted by ShockWaveXR6na

The new model Focus should increase Focus sales by 300 a month hopefully...

Falcon Sedans still a bit on the lowside and Fairlane is a JOKE, its going to be a even BIGGER JOKE once everyone sees the new Series II thats coming out this month....

Focus needs a 300% increase in order to be competitive...I'd like to see that!

[Smoke Pursuit]

Agreed, just like the Fairlane and LTD, but its not going to happen... Not straight away anyways unless Ford revise the pricing on the new model. Focus has always been priced out of the market.

[tickford2001]

Ford Falcon Ute 1598

Originally Posted by JR.

"Falcon Ute was also a key contributor to the overall result with sales up by over 38 per cent on last month's figures for a total of 1,538 sales."

ok so who is telling the truth?? :

[JR.]

While the Territory has been a raging success, it's a bit of a concern to see its affect on the number of Falcon's that Ford are building and selling.


Look at these numbers...


Ford Falcon

Feb 05 - 4650
Feb 04 - 5901

YTD 05 - 8164
YTD 04 - 10030


Ford Falcon Ute

Feb 05 - 1538
Feb 04 - 1737

YTD 05 - 2651
YTD 04 - 3052

Territory is growing the business, but a lot of that gain is being offset by Falcon losses.

[T3man]

Hahahah, I see one poor sucker bought a Jackaroo ...

[RPO83]

Originally Posted by tickford2001

ok so who is telling the truth?? :

D'oh, typo on my behalf!

[Smoke Pursuit]

Yeh Territory has hurt BA sales, just like my dad went for one this time instead of another BA sedan.. along with alot of fleet companies like Westpac bank who are upgrading XT sedans into TX Territories for Regional managers.

[Casper]

I'd say that was inevitabe JR, it would be destroying the BA wagon sales.

[RPO83]

Originally Posted by JR.

While the Territory has been a raging success, it's a bit of a concern to see its affect on the number of Falcon's that Ford are building and selling.


Look at these numbers...


Ford Falcon

Feb 05 - 4650
Feb 04 - 5901

YTD 05 - 8164
YTD 04 - 10030


Ford Falcon Ute

Feb 05 - 1538
Feb 04 - 1737

YTD 05 - 2651
YTD 04 - 3052

Territory is growing the business, but a lot of that gain is being offset by Falcon losses.

My statistics show that the Adventra is killing the Commodore,

Feb 04 6754 04 YTD 11864
Feb 05 5890 05 YTD 10115


Seriously, this segment is shrinking regardless, I wouldn't put the finger on Territory for all of the losses.

[JR.]

Originally Posted by Casper

I'd say that was inevitabe JR, it would be destroying the BA wagon sales.

Mate, on that front I don't care what Ford say in public. The Falcon wagon is dead and just doesn't know it yet.

[JR.]

Originally Posted by RPO83

Seriously, this segment is shrinking regardless, I wouldn't put the finger on Territory for all of the losses.

Yes, the segment is shrinking, but Ford have one production line running all their platform cars, and they're not working that much over time or weekend work to make enough extra capacity for 2000 Territory sales per month.

The line is flat out as it is making 75 cars an hour now so every extra Territory sale cuts a Falcon sale somewhere.

[Casper]

Originally Posted by JR.

Mate, on that front I don't care what Ford say in public. The Falcon wagon is dead and just doesn't know it yet.

Oh for sure. I'm still amazed they are building them.

Still, in their heyday the wagon was a big seller. E Series wagons are still everywhere and going strong. There were even a good amount of AU Wagons sold. Now with Terri on the market, its a rare thing indeed to see a BA Wagon. Hell, I havent even seen on on Westpoint Fords lot recently.

Time to kill it off and be done with it I say.

[SSbaby]

Originally Posted by tickford2001

ok so who is telling the truth?? :

It's the Tom Gorman 104% over-cpacity thingy! :

[JPFS1]

Originally Posted by JR.

Yes, the segment is shrinking, but Ford have one production line running all their platform cars, and they're not working that much over time or weekend work to make enough extra capacity for 2000 Territory sales per month.

The line is flat out as it is making 75 cars an hour now so every extra Territory sale cuts a Falcon sale somewhere.

Now that Terri is in full prod and cost are cut, it's total sales off the production line that matters now surely... It all adds up on the bottom line for them.

If they tell us that market sentiment is heading toward these SUV's then they've invested in the right segment and it should pay off.

I guess the next step is to futher develop and make the sedan more appealing to continue it's success in a declining segment. It's a tough job.

What seems to be very disappointing is the Fiesta... it's just not happening.

[SSbaby]

If you analyse the figures further, the 'large car segment is shrinking' thing is a little premature... it was a short sales month... much like January.

Toyota are strong. The only way to beat them is to continue to grab sales away from them. Territory is doing just that in its segment. We need Ford to have success in the small car dept to take more sales away from Toyota, especially in Fiesta's class. If you're wondering how Holden grabbed first place, look no further than the Astra sales figures and compare them to Corolla.

[Gadgetman]

Originally Posted by JR.

Mate, on that front I don't care what Ford say in public. The Falcon wagon is dead and just doesn't know it yet.

If RPO or Russellw will release the figures on Falcon Wagon, you will find that they are doing quite well.

[Chucky]

Originally Posted by JR.

While the Territory has been a raging success, it's a bit of a concern to see its affect on the number of Falcon's that Ford are building and selling.
...
Territory is growing the business, but a lot of that gain is being offset by Falcon losses.

Falcon needs to spread it's wings a bit if it's to pick uo private buyers. Personally I'd love to see a Falcon Hatchback ala the Mazda 6. Would sell very well IMO..

[Chucky]

Originally Posted by Gadgetman

If RPO or Russellw will release the figures on Falcon Wagon, you will find that they are doing quite well.

That it is.. Considering what it's up against.

While there is sales reps there'll always be a market for a pure wagon derivative. Cut Wagon & you might as well cut Fairlane & LTD too..

[russellw]

Originally Posted by SSbaby

If you analyse the figures further, the 'large car segment is shrinking' thing is a little premature... it was a short sales month... much like January.

If YOU analyse the figures a little further then you will see that the large car segment has been in decline since 1998; not only in raw numbers as shown HERE but even worse in terms of total percentage sales in a growing overall market. Must update these figures to include the last 4 years and show you what I mean.

Most of the gains have been made by the AusStats 'Other' segment which includes the crossover style vehicles.

Russ

[460cixy]

mmmmmmmm i dont recon the falcon wagon is dead . but i do think it needs to look a bit more sporty . my misses is a holden chick and a muso we have used her sisters vt wagon heaps to do gigs out of town and she loves it . it looks good and goes well . she is looking at buying herself a bigger car she only has a barina . she wont touch a falcon wagon just cause of the looks nothing more . but she is seriously looking at a ba ute with a hard cover . so i recon i have her converted. but the wagon looks are a let down for most ppl . personaly i look at funcion over form but most dont.

[XR Martin]

Must be nice working at the Mitsubishi plant at the moment. You'd spend half your day on a break :

[460cixy]

i read in the canberra times today the mister shitshtsy has increased there market share ect ect as much as i dont like them . if thay fold it will mean shit loads of jobs lost ect. i see more and more new magnas around all the time so i guess ppl like them . haveing had a few bitsaremissing they realy arnt a bad car for a front drive car only thing i think lets them down is the older engines that have givan them a bad name. the bodys are prety good to drive ect instriment placement blah blah .

As much as I'm not a Mitsu fan I wouldn't like to see them fold their operations in Australia. They are now setting the benchmark for warranty and build quality so hopefully Ford will follow suite with the build quality aspect atleast. In turn we may see more people switching to the blue oval, in turn hopefully resulting in knocking either Holden or Toyota into third place.

[RPO83]

Originally Posted by 460cixy

i read in the canberra times today the mister shitshtsy has increased there market share ect ect as much as i dont like them . if thay fold it will mean shit loads of jobs lost ect. i see more and more new magnas around all the time so i guess ppl like them . haveing had a few bitsaremissing they realy arnt a bad car for a front drive car only thing i think lets them down is the older engines that have givan them a bad name. the bodys are prety good to drive ect instriment placement blah blah .

The only people who are liking them at the moment are people who want a very cheap fleet car, and the rest are forced upon our poor politicians to drive

[russellw]

The graphical representation of the February figures is available now in the Technical Resources section.

Regards
Russ