VW, Ford battle it out in South Africa's used car surge

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A total of 33,293 used vehicles were sold during the month. This represents a 3.4% decline from January’s 34,452 units, but a 15.3% increase compared with February 2025, when 28,884 vehicles were sold.

Toyota remained the most popular used vehicle brand, with 5,513 units sold in February. Although this was down from 5,876 units in January, it was higher than the 5,099 units recorded a year earlier. Volkswagen ranked second with 4,197 used vehicle sales, followed by Ford with 3,340 units.

Among the top-selling models, the Ford Ranger remained South Africa’s most popular used vehicle. A total of 1,913 units were sold during the month, reflecting a 10.9% increase compared with the same period last year.

The Toyota Hilux ranked second with 1,552 units sold, followed by the Volkswagen Polo Vivo with 1,192 units and the Volkswagen Polo with 1,151 units.

Several lower-priced models recorded strong growth during the month. The Suzuki Swift saw year-on-year sales increase by 55.7% to 819 units, while the Hyundai Grand i10 recorded the largest increase among the top models, rising 62.8% to 503 units.

Other models showing notable growth included the Isuzu D-Max and the Toyota Corolla Cross, which recorded year-on-year increases of 25.2% and 34.6%, respectively.

According to George Mienie, the figures reflect continued resilience in the used car market despite economic pressures and fewer selling days in February.

“Established favourites such as the Ford Ranger, Toyota Hilux and Polo Vivo remain dominant, but there is also strong growth from more affordable models,” he said.

The cumulative value of used vehicles sold in February reached R13.03bn. This was down from R14.32bnin January but up from R12.02 billion in February last year.

The average used vehicle price increased to R428,562, while average mileage declined to 69,654km.