By David Toscano, Trade Content Editor, carsales.com.au
It seems there’s no stopping SUVs and LCVs return to form; BMW bounces back; MG resonates with more new-car shoppers; and Australians’ enduring love of used Toyotas continues…
Here’s what caught our eye on carsales between May 21-27:
Users logged 7.5m sessions during this period, resulting in 89.7m searches, up 7.7% on the previous week, while views totalled 19.5m, up 8.3%.¹
“The record run of car-shopping activity continued in the last week of May,” says Kellie Cordner, carsales Chief Marketing Officer.
“Overall, carsales served 32.2m sessions in May 2020 – our highest ever month of traffic.”²
And perhaps it’s no surprise, but car buyers haven’t lost their love for weekends – specifically, Saturdays. This May, dealer enquiries on carsales.com.au on Saturdays have broken records, as consumers return to the marketplace looking for a new car.
“In times of record car-shopping activity you need to ensure that every eligible vehicle that you have for sale is published on carsales.com.au,” says Michael Holmes, Executive Director Dealer at carsales.
“And promoting that inventory effectively during the week in the lead up to Saturday peaks ensures you have the best opportunity to reach buyers.
“Many consumers research and ‘watch’ the cars they’re interested during the week, waiting until Saturday to contact the dealer,” he adds.
New car market – SUVs drive growth
Almost all brands in the Australian marketplace increased eyeballs on their new car inventory on carsales, with 93% of makes registering an increase in view volume week-on-week.
Ford was the brand with the greatest volume increase, up 18% compared to last week.¹
Other big winners this week included Mercedes-Benz up 7%, Mazda up 12%, Toyota up 11% and Mitsubishi up 16%.¹
And when it came to buyer enquiries, there were two top performers.
Hot on the heels of Audi’s growth last week, BMW increased its enquiry volume by 30% compared to the previous week.¹
“The German trio of Mercedes-Benz, Audi and BMW have been strong performers in recent weeks,” says Jeremy Moger.
“Brand initiatives around extended warranties and drive-away pricing are resonating with buyers looking to maximise value in this time.”
And at the more accessible end of the market, MG registered a whopping 81% increase in enquiries on the previous week.¹
With a storied badge, seven-year warranty, five-star safety and sub-$31K starting price, models such as the HS SUV are attracting more and more interest from Australian car buyers.
With the end of financial year approaching and after a subdued week between May 14-20, the light commercial 4x4 vehicle segment bounced back last week, with buyer enquiries up 12% on the previous week.¹
More enquiry growth was derived by Australia’s continued fascination with SUVs. SUV Small < $40k (+17%), SUV Large < $70k (+11%) and SUV Medium > $60k (+20%) all realised strong growth compared to the previous week.¹
Used car market – heritage Toyota nameplates in demand
In the used car market it was Toyota and Kia that were the big winners with heartland Aussie buyers, increasing views on their inventory by 6% and 12% respectively.¹
And when it came to enquiries, there is little doubt that Australian used car shoppers love pre-loved Toyotas. Indeed, the three biggest winners in week-on-week enquiry growth were all Toyota nameplates with significant heritage in the Australian market: Corolla, up 9%; LandCruiser Prado, up 12%; and Camry, up 11%.¹
Among prestige brands, it was BMW, up 7.5%, with the week’s biggest enquiry growth.¹
Australia’s most wanted – May 2020²
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Most-searched dealer used vehicles
1. Toyota Landcruiser
2. Toyota HiLux
3. Ford Ranger
4. Holden Commodore
5. Toyota Corolla
6. Toyota Landcruiser Prado
7. Volkswagen Golf
8. Mercedes-Benz C-Class
9. Mazda3
10. Mitsubishi Triton
Fastest-moving dealer used vehicles
1. 2019 Mitsubishi Outlander ES
2. 2018 Hyundai i30 Active
3. 2019 Nissan X-Trail ST
4. 2018 Toyota Corolla Ascent Sport
5. 2018 Toyota Camry Ascent
6. 2018 Toyota Kluger GX
7. 2018 Nissan X-Trail ST
8. 2019 Ford Ranger XLT
9. 2016 Toyota Camry Altise
10. 2018 Ford Mustang GT
Source:
1. carsales internal data, May 21-27, 2020 compared to May 14-20, 2020
2. carsales internal data, May 2020