Polo (VW)

The Associacao Nacional dos Fabricantes de Veiculos Automores (ANFAVEA) announced that Brazilian vehicle sales (including trucks and buses) in April 2024 of 220,842 units represented an increase of 37.4% from April 2023.

Vehicle sales in April consisted of 164,385 passenger cars; 43,963 light commercial vehicles; 10,758 trucks; and 1,736 buses.

Among passenger vehicle manufacturers, FCA sold 34,277 units (20.9% share), VW sold 27,821 units (16.9%), GM sold 24,764 units (15.1%), Hyundai sold 15,594 units (9.5%) and Toyota sold 12,639 units (7.7%). 

Among light commercial vehicle manufapcturers, FCA sold 19,178 units (43.6% share), VW sold 5,621 units (12.8%), GM sold 5,096 units (11.6%), Toyota sold 4,793 units (10.9%), Ford sold 2,978 units (6.8%).

The VW Polo was the best-selling passenger vehicle in April with 12,434 sales, followed by the Chevrolet Onix with 9,087 sales, Fiat Argo with 8,599 sales, Hyundai HB20 with 8,194 sales, Chevrolet Onix Plus with 7,049 sales, VW T Cross with 6,224 sales, and GM Tracker with 5,670 sales.

The Fiat Strada was the best-selling commercial vehicle in April with 11,497 sales, followed by the VW Saveiro with 5,373 sales, Toyota Hilux with 4,792 sales, Fiat Toro with 3,896 sales, GM Montana with 2,534 sales, Chevrolet S10 with 2,473 sales, and Ford Ranger with 2,382 sales.

In ANFAVEA's sales report by fuel type, sales of flexible fuel vehicles were up 31.1% y/y to 165,610 units (79.5% share), diesel vehicles were up 20.5% to 19,957 units (9.6%), gasoline vehicles increased 96.5% to 7,581 units (3.6%), hybrid vehicles increased 57.1% to 4,893 units (2.3%), Plug-in hybrid vehicles increased 224.2% to 3,608 units (1.7%) and electric vehicles increased 1,100.5% to 6,699 units (3.2%).

On April 9, Scotiabank maintained its previous March forecast, estimating full-year Brazilian sales of 2.27 million units in 2024 and 2.38 million units in 2025.

(ANFAVEA release on May 8, 2024) (Fenabrave press release on May 3, 2024) (Scotiabank release on April 9, 2024)

On May 8, Volkswagen South Africa unveiled the Polo Sedan range which now includes the 85 kW 1.0 TSI engine, available in the Life and Style variants. The engine delivers 178 Nm of torque, reaching 0 to 100 km/h in 11.5 seconds with a top speed of 190 km/h and fuel consumption of 6.3 litres/100 km.

The Polo Sedan Life features keyless entry, a rearview camera, 10-inch touchscreen infotainment, and more. The style adds an 8-inch digital cockpit, rain sensor, tilt/slide sunroof, and others. Standard features in the Polo Sedan Life include Hill Start Assist and a leather-wrapped multi-function steering wheel with shifting paddles.

Prices start at ZAR 421,100 for the Life variant and ZAR 454,900 for the Style variant.

Based on Volkswagen South Africa press release

According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) on May 7, UK passenger car sales increased 1.0% to 134,274 units in April 2024. It was the market’s best April since 2021 and 21st month of growth. Year-to-date sales increased 8.4% with 679,822 cars registered in the first four months of 2024.

April sales for VW increased 12.8% to 13,260 units (9.9% market share), Audi sales decreased 9.9% to 10,253 units (7.6% share) while BMW sales increased 34.6% to 9,156 units (6.8% share). Ford sales decreased 20.8% to 8,152 units (6.1% share), Kia sales increased 1.4% to 8,044 units (6.0% share).

The best-selling cars in April 2023 were Ford Puma (4,339 units), VW Polo (3,413 units), Audi A3 (3,010 units), Nissan Qashqai (2,495 units) and VW Golf (2,361 units).

Compared to last April, gasoline-engine car sales decreased 3.1% to 74,877 units (55.8% share), EV increased 10.7% to 22,717 units (16.9% share), HEV increased 16.7% to 17,538 units (13.1% share), PHEV increased 22.1% to 10,493 units (7.8% share), and diesel-engine car sales decreased 25.3% to 8,649 units (6.4% share).

In April, private car sales decreased 17.7% to 50,458 units (37.6% share), fleet sales increased 18.5% to 81,207 units 60.5% share), and businesses sales decreased 16.1% to 2,609 units (1.9% share). Continuing the trend seen throughout the year, growth was driven entirely by fleets.

Sales of all vans to 3.5 tons increased 5.4% to 23,889 units, sales of trucks between 3.5 and 6.0 tons increased 122% to 666 units while sales of taxis decreased 67% to 65 units in April.

(SMMT press releases from 7 May 2024 1 / 2)