Sales of Medium Cars Surged Beyond Those of Large Cars in Australia for The First Time

Sales of medium cars surged beyond those of large cars in Australia for the first time in 2012,with the locally produced Toyota Camry leading the charge.

After coming up just short of the large-car segment in 2011(75,984 versus 78,077),the medium class rocketed past it in 2012.Sales soared 15.4 per cent to 87,674 units,while large cars plummeted to 63,096,down 19.2 per cent from the previous year.

The new-generation Toyota Camry was dominant at the top with 27,230 sales,up 42.1 per cent over 2011.The Camry Hybrid accounted for a quarter of those sales(7107),and would rank second outright in the segment if it was split from the conventional Camry.Backed by a zero per cent finance offer,the Camry Hybrid enjoyed its best sales month in December as 1143 left showrooms–incredibly,humbling the Ford Falcon sedan by 32 units.

The Mercedes-Benz C-Class(6676)claimed second place ahead of the Mazda6(6558)and Honda Accord Euro(6155)–both of which are significantly cheaper than the premium German mid-sizer.

The BMW 3 Series made it two premium models inside the top five,rising 30.7 per cent in 2012 to 5493 sales,displacing the Ford Mondeo,which dropped 21.5 per cent to 5203 sales and sixth position.

The Subaru Liberty and Volkswagen Passat both enjoyed double-digit percentage growth in 2012,while the Hyundai i45 and Audi A4 slipped in the opposite direction at similar rates,leaving the Volkswagen Jetta just 109 adrift of the top 10.

Top 20 best-selling medium cars–2012

1. Toyota Camry–27,230(+42.1 per cent)
2. Mercedes-Benz C-Class–6676(+3.9 per cent)
3. Mazda6–6558(+13.2 per cent)
4. Honda Accord Euro–6155(+26.2 per cent)
5. BMW 3 Series–5493(+30.7 per cent)
6. Ford Mondeo–5203(–21.5 per cent)
7. Subaru Liberty–4407(+13.1 per cent)
8. Volkswagen Passat–4362(+27.5 per cent)
9. Hyundai i45–3640(–25.3 per cent)
10. Audi A4–2746(–11.6 per cent)
11. Volkswagen Jetta–2637(+58.2 per cent)
12. Hyundai i40–2392(+507.1 per cent)
13. Kia Optima–2267(+173.8 per cent)
14. Lexus IS–2123(–20.6 per cent)
15. Suzuki Kizashi–1020(–35.9 per cent)
16. Skoda Octavia–914(–41.3 per cent)
17. Volvo S60/V60–904(–22.9 per cent)
18. Audi A5 Sportback–908(+2.7 per cent)
19. Volkswagen Passat CC–848(+33.1 per cent)
20. Renault Latitude–326(+31.5 per cent)