December 6th,
1999
Honda crunches another sales record
Honda Australia and its dealers retailed a best-ever 2800 vehicles last month, and
clinched a new annual record with one month to go in 1999.
The performance smashed Honda’s previous monthly record of 2778 units set in May
this year. It was also Honda’s 28th record month in the past 31.
Year to date, Honda pushed its market share to a record 3.7 per cent, compared with 3.2
at the same time last year, and also stretched its lead over Mazda to 1917 units –
26,656 to 24,739.
Honda’s hot four-wheel-drive, the CR-V, achieved its highest sales since launch
two years ago with 1085 units, topping the all-terrain wagon segment for the second month
in a row. It outsold the Toyota Landcruiser Wagon (1047 units) and the Nissan Patrol (733
units).
CR-V’s little brother, the HR-V, continued its strong run with 291 units, easily
beating the Suzuki Jimny (85) and Daihatsu Terios (177). Together, CR-V and HR-V accounted
for 15.1 per cent of the all-terrain wagon segment.
The S2000 maintained its strong presence in the luxury segment with 94 units in
November, while the evergreen Civic was a consistent performer with 734 sales.
Integra accounted for 150 units, securing second position in the sports car segment
behind Toyota Celica (333). Along with the Honda Prelude (96), the Integra gave Honda 25.1
per cent of the sports car segment for the month.
Honda’s general manager of sales and marketing, Tony Devers, said Honda’s
strong dealer commitment throughout 1999 was the main weapon in the battle for record
sales.
"Honda has maintained the pace this month with aggressive performances from not
only our newer models, like the S2000 and Integra Type R, but also from our ever-reliable
models like the CR-V and Civic", he said.
