Toyota Quinella In Large SUV Sales
Jan 12, 2016 By Toyota Australia.
Australia's two best-selling large SUVs in 2015 both carry a Toyota badge - the LandCruiser Prado in first place with stablemate Kluger in hot pursuit.
Prado, with 13,887 sales so far this year, has an insurmountable lead and is set to record an unprecedented 13th year at the top of its segment.
Kluger completes the Toyota quinella following a sales increase this year of 24.8 per cent or more than 2,500 vehicles to reach 12,627 registrations.
The petrol-powered seven-seater is more than 1,400 sales ahead of the third-placed rival and needs fewer than 800 sales in December to establish a new sales record, eclipsing the previous best of 13,424 vehicles set in 2008.
Toyota's strength in the large SUV segment was boosted by the arrival of the all-new Fortuner in October, a capable off-road family wagon that has already contributed 777 sales.
These three vehicles, plus the FJ Cruiser, together account for more than one-quarter of all large SUV sales - a share of 26.5 per cent.
Toyota Australia's executive director sales and marketing Tony Cramb said Prado sales benefited from the introduction in 2015 of a new 2.8-litre turbo-diesel engine, improved petrol V6 and new six-speed automatic transmission.
"Prado sales rose 8.8 per cent in the three months since these updates due to the higher levels of performance, driving enjoyment and refinement," Mr Cramb said.
"Kluger has enjoyed its first full year of availability since the arrival of the third-generation range which is addressing the needs of families and business buyers with new features and in-cabin technologies, increased cargo capacity and a more dynamic driving experience.
"The new seven-seat Fortuner allows Toyota to compete for the first time with a diesel alternative to the petrol-only Kluger.
"Importantly, Fortuner delivers SUV style and comfort with genuine off-road performance in a vehicle that has been developed and tested in Australia."
In the upper-large SUV category, LandCruiser wagon has lifted sales this year by 1.3 per cent to 8,379 vehicles for a segment share of 82.6 per cent.
LandCruiser 200 Series has recently undergone a series of advances that have improved everything from styling to performance and safety.
Toyota sells more SUVs than any other brand - a total of 53,783 deliveries so far in 2015. No other company has reached 40,000 sales.