South African used car market gains momentum in July 2026

AutoTrader’s latest sales data shows strong growth for Toyota, Suzuki and several compact, affordable models.

At a Glance – July 2026 Car Sales

Used Cars

Sales: 34,759 (+10.8% MoM, +2.5% YoY)Average price: R433,552 (+2.5% MoM, +4.2% YoY)Top seller (overall): Ford Ranger (2,055 units)Top seller (passenger car): Volkswagen Polo Vivo (1,355 units)Trend: July’s used car market rebounded strongly, with +10.8% MoM growth and continued demand for affordable, efficient models.

South Africa’s used car market returned to stronger growth in July 2026, with AutoTrader recording a sizeable month-on-month increase in sales following a softer June.

A total of 34,759 used vehicles were sold through AutoTrader in July 2026, representing a +10.8% month-on-month (MoM) increase from the 31,363 vehicles sold in June. Sales were also +2.5% year-on-year (YoY) compared with the 33,919 used vehicles sold in July 2025.

Toyota remained comfortably South Africa’s best-selling used car brand, with 6,055 vehicles sold during the month. This marked a +13% MoM increase over June’s 5,352 units and a +3% YoY improvement. Volkswagen retained second place with 4,595 sales, up +12% MoM but down -1% YoY, while Ford followed with 3,480 units, recording a +12% MoM increase despite sales being -3% YoY.

One of the standout performances came from Suzuki. The Japanese brand recorded 2,461 used sales in July, an increase of +19% MoM and +20% YoY. That was enough to move Suzuki into fourth place ahead of Hyundai, which registered 2,318 sales, up +4% MoM but down -4% YoY.

BMW remained sixth with 1,900 sales, representing growth of +9% MoM but a -3% YoY decline. Mercedes-Benz followed with 1,316 sales, up +11% MoM and down -12% YoY, ahead of Nissan, Kia and Renault. Notably, each of the 10 best-selling brands recorded higher sales than in June, even though several remained below their July 2025 levels.

Model Performance

At model level, the Ford Ranger continued to lead South Africa’s used car market. A total of 2,055 Rangers were sold through AutoTrader in July, a +13% MoM increase from June’s 1,823 units and +1.5% YoY growth from the 2,025 examples sold in July last year.

The Toyota Hilux remained its closest challenger, recording 1,661 sales. While the Hilux was still 394 units behind the Ranger, its sales climbed +18% MoM and +1.5% YoY. The stronger July showing means South Africa’s two dominant bakkies both ended the month ahead of their year-ago performances.

Volkswagen once again occupied the remaining positions on the podium, although this time the Polo Vivo strengthened its advantage over the Polo. Used Polo Vivo sales rose to 1,355 units, +22% MoM and +2.5% YoY. The Polo recorded 1,232 sales, representing a +13% MoM increase, although volumes remained -12% YoY.

“July’s sales performance shows just how quickly activity can return when buyers find the right combination of price, practicality and value,” says George Mienie, CEO of AutoTrader. “What is particularly encouraging is that every brand in the top 10 improved on its June sales. At the same time, the continued growth of models such as the Swift, Corolla Cross and Starlet points to a market where affordability and lower running costs are becoming increasingly influential in the vehicles consumers choose.”

Further down the rankings, smaller and more affordable vehicles continued to perform strongly. The Suzuki Swift held onto fifth place with 883 sales, +16% MoM and an impressive +28% YoY. The Toyota Fortuner followed with 795 sales, improving +12% MoM but declining -2.5% YoY.

Toyota’s Corolla Cross continued its strong run, moving from eighth place in June to seventh in July. Sales increased to 625 units, up +7% MoM and +28.6% YoY. The Starlet also gained ground, climbing from tenth to eighth after recording 614 sales. That represents a +22% MoM increase and +20.9% YoY growth.

The Hyundai Grand i10 slipped from seventh to ninth despite sales increasing +2% MoM to 600 units. Compared with July 2025, Grand i10 sales were up +9.9% YoY. The Isuzu D-Max completed the top 10 with 583 sales, representing a +12% MoM increase and +0.9% YoY growth.

Variants and Prices

When it comes to individual variants, the Volkswagen Polo Vivo 1.4 remained South Africa’s most popular used vehicle derivative, with 1,032 units sold in July. The Polo 1.0 TSI followed with 801 sales, ahead of the Toyota Hilux 2.8 GD-6 with 693 units. The Hilux 2.4 GD-6 and Ford Ranger XL were tied on 601 sales apiece.

Used vehicle prices also moved higher in July. The average price of a vehicle sold through AutoTrader reached R433,552, up from R423,080 in June and R415,983 in July 2025. This represents an increase of approximately +2.5% MoM and +4.2% YoY.

At the same time, buyers purchased vehicles with slightly lower mileage. The average used vehicle sold in July had travelled 70,483 km, compared with 71,419 km in June and 73,579 km in July 2025. The average year model was 2021, compared with 2020 in July last year.

Source: AutoTrader Used Car Sales Data: 1 - 31 July 2026

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