SA’s used car market opened 2026 on a firm footing, with double-digit month-on-month and year-on-year growth recorded in January, according to the latest data from AutoTrader.
A total of 34,452 used vehicles changed hands during the month — comfortably up on December 2025’s 30,742 units and January 2025’s 30,961. That translates to a 12.07% increase month on month, and an 11.28% rise compared with the same month last year.
After a solid 2025, maintaining momentum was never guaranteed, but the year has begun with broad-based gains across brands and models.
Toyota remains the dominant force in the used market, selling 5,876 vehicles in January. That’s up from 5,039 units in December and 5,330 in January last year.
The brand now accounts for 40% of the top 10 best-selling used models.
Volkswagen held onto second place with 4,733 sales, followed by Ford on 3,577 units — more than half of which were Rangers.
Toyota posted one of the strongest month-on-month improvements, up 17% from December and 10% year-on-year.
Suzuki delivered the biggest month-on-month gain at 25%, while Hyundai stood out for year-on-year growth, surging 45%.
BMW was the only major brand to register a month-on-month decline, slipping 4% compared with December, though it remained 5% up year on year.
Mercedes-Benz and Nissan recorded the steepest annual declines, both down 10% compared with January 2025.
In terms of vehicle models, the Ford Ranger continues to lead the market. A total of 2,069 units were sold in January, marking a 6.3% year-on-year increase.
The Toyota Hilux followed with 1,604 units, up 6.2% year-on-year.
The Volkswagen Polo Vivo and Polo retained third and fourth positions, respectively, underlining the continued popularity of compact hatchbacks.
The Suzuki Swift climbed into fifth place with 794 sales, overtaking the Toyota Fortuner. Swift sales were up 24.6% year on year, reflecting continued demand for smaller, more affordable vehicles.
Further down the rankings, the Toyota Corolla Cross (seventh) rose 42.8% year on year to 651 units, while the Hyundai Grand i10 jumped 71.9%, increasing from 320 units in January 2025 to 550 in January 2026.
The cumulative value of used vehicles sold in January reached R14.32bn. That’s 11.05% higher than December’s R12.89bn and 13.8% above the R12.59bn recorded in January last year.
The average used vehicle price came in at R416,082 — slightly down from R419,537 in December, but up from R406,693 a year ago.
Average mileage continued to edge lower, declining to 70,938km in January from 72,433km in December and 74,041km in January 2025.
On a derivative level, the Volkswagen Polo Vivo 1.4 was the best-selling used variant in January, with 1,044 units sold.
It was followed by the Volkswagen Polo 1.0 TSI (791), Toyota Hilux 2.8 GD-6 (694) and Ford Ranger XL (689). The Toyota Hilux 2.4 GD-6 rounded out the top five with 569 sales.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.