In this series, which we aim to bring to you every week, we’ll be detailing some of the key numbers and trends that we’re seeing in terms of dealer connections made through our site.
As this data is considered somewhat representative of broader industry activity, and serves as one of the more insightful leading indicators for potential car sales, we hope it will fulfil a few purposes for our broad audience. First, to document not just how we’re performing as a business, but how dealers and the wider market stand to perform, so you don’t have to wait til that next set of official sales data.
Without further ado, here’s what happened over the last week.
Total new car enquiries
Continuing the subdued action of late, new car enquiries fell again last week, marking the fourth week out of five where new car buying interest has decreased.
In the week ending Sunday, April 17, 20222, inbound enquiries totalled 1,149, which was an 8.8% decrease compared with the week ending Sunday, April 10, 2022, when there were 1,260 dealer connections.
The headwinds at the moment remain the same as we’ve seen over the last couple months. Rising household costs are putting new car buyers under more pressure. Interest rates are expected to rise soon, with the major banks already moving fixed home loan rates higher. And the uncertainty surrounding the federal election represents another concern that will hang over the nation for another five weeks, assuming we don’t end up with a hung parliament.
New car interest by brand
Mixed results among the frontrunners in the new car market saw a couple of changes unfold, including Mazda leapfrogging Kia to take the mantle as the most sought-after brand. There was an 11.9% increase in queries for Mazda vehicles, contrasting the 5.1% decline for Kia.
On the other hand, Mitsubishi and Ford both went backwards, but Hyundai was able to deliver a respectable performance in light of the broader retreat in sentiment across the platform.
Whereas brands like Volvo, Volkswagen, Isuzu and Nissan were more or less able to maintain a similar level of engagement among motorists as the preceding week, it was a different story for Toyota, where the number of quote requests for the brand fell by nearly half. That might have something to do with the long wait times for the brand, even though it’s still a bestseller.
|
Prospective New Car Buyer Numbers |
Apr 11 – Apr 17 |
Apr 4 – Apr 10 |
% Change in Enquiries |
|
151 |
135 |
11.9% |
|
|
149 |
157 |
-5.1% |
|
|
118 |
105 |
12.4% |
|
|
94 |
97 |
-3.1% |
|
|
91 |
100 |
-9.0% |
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