November trucks sales inch towards record year

With just one month remaining to round out the calendar year, registrations of new commercial vehicles are poised to set a new all-time record.

Another strong month of 4233 new registrations in November, the figure up 16.0 per cent over the same month last year, has seen the 2022 tally reach a year-to-date total of 40,267 units. That’s just 1361 units shy of the previous all-time record of 41,628 new trucks and vans, set in 2018.

Here’s a quick rundown of the major segments and the top five individual brands by year-to-date new registrations…

Across all the categories, 4233 new commercial vehicles were registered in November, up 16.0% over November 2021, for a year-to-date total of 40,2676. That’s up 6.3% over the previous corresponding period.

Isuzu leads the way on 12,110 units, up an incredible 30.6% over the same period last year, followed by Hino (5472 units, up 3.4%), Fuso (4509 units, up 4.3%), Kenworth (2722 units, up 7.0%) and Volvo (2253 units, up 44.0%).

A total of 1519 new trucks were registered in the heavy-duty segment in November, the figure up 15.4% over the same month last year. That brings the heavy-duty tally to 13,485 units year to date, which is up 14.9% over the previous corresponding period.

Kenworth continues to lead the segment with a year-to-date total of 2721 new trucks, which is up 6.9% over the same time last year. Narrowing the gap to Kenworth is Volvo (2213 units, up 44.9%), followed by Isuzu (1860 units, up 41.9%), Scania (1014 units, down 3.9%), and UD Trucks (949 units, up 75.4%).

A total of 696 new trucks were registered in the medium-duty segment in November, which is up 1.2% on November 2021. That brings the year-to-date total to 7162 units, which is up 7.6% over the previous corresponding period.

Isuzu leads the segment with a total of 3283 units, which is up 20.1% year to date. Following Isuzu is Hino (2135 units, up 0.9%), Fuso (1204 units, down 8.2%), UD Trucks (173 units, up 13.1%), and IVECO (120 units, up 34.8%).

In Australia’s largest commercial vehicle segment, light-duty trucks, the 1436 new registrations recorded in November equates with an increase of 10.8% over the same month last year. The year-to-date tally of 14,651 units is up 11.4% over the previous corresponding period.

Isuzu leads the light-duty segment with a year-to-date tally of 6967 units, which is up 33.2% over the same time last year. Following Isuzu is Hino (2647 units, down 12.1%), Fuso (2593 units, up 4.3%), IVECO (782 units, down 6.9%), and Mercedes-Benz (506 units, up 17.4%).

The light-duty van segment is still down for the year but the category made major gains in the month of November. The 582 new light-duty vans registered for the month equate with growth of 66.3% over November 2021, which has bumped the segment’s year-to-date total to 4969. That figure still represents a contraction of 21.6% over the same time last year.

Segment leader Mercedes-Benz is sitting on 1901 new registrations year to date, which is down 20.0% over the previous corresponding period. Trailing some distance behind is Renault (1164 units, up 14.3%), followed by Volkswagen (798 units, down 16.8%), IVECO (545 units, up 31.6%), and Ford (331 units, down 69.2%).

Commenting on the November sales, Tony McMullan, the TIC’s Chief Executive Officer, said: “It is pleasing to see the solid sales continue through November, with a number of new records set. However, we will have to wait another month to see a new all-time annual sales record set for new trucks in Australia.

“These record sales could not come at a better time, with the average age of trucks cracking the 15-year mark in 2021 and with Australia having one of the oldest truck fleets in the Western world, we need record, or near record sales to reverse this fleet aging trend,” he added.

“An old truck fleet is not good for road safety, nor noxious and greenhouse emissions, or for operator productivity. So why do I mention this, when many might expect celebrations are pending for what should be a new annual sales record when results are in early next month? The answer is simple, the Australian road toll is too high and heavy vehicles are over-represented in those crashes and this is partly to do with the fact that the older trucks in our nation’s truck fleet do not feature the advanced safety features found in newer trucks.

"Reducing the national truck fleet age will bring benefits for all road users and reducing the fleet’s age starts with replacing the oldest trucks with newer, safer, greener and more productive ones,” Mr. McMullan concluded.

Related reading:
All-time record for Aussie truck sales
Isuzu breaks all-time sales record
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