New-vehicle sales held steady in February, at 48 113 units, compared with the 48 144 units sold in the same month last year.
This said, however, the new passenger car market declined by 4.4%, to 31 400 units.
The National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (Naamsa) said on Wednesday that the car rental industry had made a strong contribution to this segment of the market, accounting for 19.1% of new-car sales in February.
The association also noted that the rental industry’s share was understated since it excluded BMW South Africa (SA) and Mercedes-Benz South Africa (MBSA) car rental sales.
BMW SA said it would, from February onwards, report one aggregate sales number in respect of passenger car sales in the South African market, similar to MBSA.
MBSA halted detailed segmental reporting in 2014, fuelled by what it said was the necessity to comply with competition law.
According to Naamsa, BMW SA said it would review its decision once “all reporting companies report new vehicle sales numbers by market segment, vehicle type and channel – dealer sales, government sales, car rental sales and single units”.
Countering the fall in new passenger car sales, February sales of new bakkies, minibuses and vans, at 14 416 units, gained 9.7%, while sales of medium trucks, at 705 units, increased by 8.5%.
Sales of new heavy-trucks and buses jumped by 6.1%, to 1 592 units.
New-vehicle exports from South Africa performed at “the lower end of expectations”, said Naamsa, gaining 0.2% in February, to 29 388 units.
Sales of the Ford Kuga, currently the subject of a safety recall, dropped from 146 units in December, to 74 units in January, and 57 units in February.
Naamsa said it remained positive that new-vehicle sales in South Africa could improve by 3.5% in 2017, compared with an 11.4% drop in 2016.