Struggles for Both Low- and High-Riding Vehicles Amid Price Pinch

Hyundai Grand i10. Photo: TC Group

The Vietnamese auto market’s gloomy outlook has continued to affect many segments in the first two months of this year. In the low-cost small car segment, total sales for the segment reached 452 units, nearly 200 units lower than the previous month, equivalent to a decrease of about 28.4%.

Compared to the same period in 2023, the cheapest group in the market saw a decrease in sales of up to 59.4%. Despite Toyota Wigo not returning to the market at that time, Hyundai Grand i10 accounted for almost all sales with 949 units sold.

A bright spot: Toyota Wigo

When the entire segment saw a decline in sales due to a declining market, Toyota Wigo unexpectedly became a rare highlight when it recorded a positive growth rate of 76%. Toyota’s small car sold 148 units, continuing to surpass Kia Morning to become the second best-selling car in the segment.

Reflecting on the time just before withdrawing from the market, Toyota Wigo had actually been out of breath on the sales track for a long time due to competition from Kia Morning and Hyundai Grand i10. However, as soon as it returned, although the number of cars sold was not too impressive, Toyota Wigo still managed to post consistent sales of over 200 units/month.

Recently, Toyota also went through many days of supply fluctuations when many agencies continuously announced that many popular car models were out of stock, including Toyota Wigo.

When contacting a Toyota dealer in Ho Chi Minh City, the consultant said that at the end of February, Toyota Wigo was almost out of stock for all versions in the two colors pearl white and black. Customers at that time who wanted to receive the car immediately could only choose red or wait 2-3 weeks.

Now, the supply of this small car has gradually stabilized, however, the pearl white G version is still in short supply in the warehouse.

Kia Morning continues to decline, Hyundai Grand i10 sells less than 250 units

In contrast to the positive performance of Toyota Wigo, Kia Morning’s sales continued to decline when the number of cars sold in February decreased to below 50 units. According to statistics from the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers Association (VAMA), this is the lowest sales result for this model since the beginning of 2023. With sales of 41 units in February, Kia Morning continues to become the slowest-selling model in the segment.

The top seller – Hyundai Grand i10, is now struggling with sales of only 263 units, equivalent to a decrease of 45.2% compared to the first month of the year. Compared to the same period in 2023, the number of Grand i10 units sold in the market has dropped by about 72.2%.

Once the first choice of many buyers in the 2018-2022 period if they wanted to do taxi or transportation business, the A-class small car segment is no longer the priority of first-time car buyers when faced by the presence of many new car lines with more competitive prices.

Kia Morning. Photo: Boi Ha.

The sedan variant of the Hyundai Grand i10 is currently the most expensive model in the segment with a listed price of 455 million VND. This price for the “king of segment A” is difficult to compete with SUV models such as Toyota Raize (498 million) or Kia Sonet (539 million).

Competitors also face difficulties

Looking wider at the neighboring segment of A+/B- SUVs, it is easy to see that the decline in sales is also affecting this group of young vehicles as all the names such as Kia Sonet, Toyota Raize or the newcomer Hyundai Venue all recorded a significant decrease in sales in February.

The total number of SUV vehicles sold in February was 756 units, lower than the previous month’s result by about 35.3%. In the same period last year, although Hyundai Venue did not appear, total sales of the group were also around 1,218 units.

The total number of A-class SUV cars sold in the market in the second reporting period of the year was just barely higher than the sales of only Kia Sonet in January.

Leading the segment is still Kia Sonet with 181 units, accounting for 56.6% of total sales of the entire group. Although still recording a decrease of about 39.7% compared to the previous month, Kia Vietnam’s small SUV maintained its leading position amid the difficult market situation.

Kia Sonet. Photo: Phuong Lam.

After 2 months of recording sales exceeding 300 units/month, Toyota Raize has now returned to below 200 units, specifically 181 units. Although always inferior to Kia Sonet in the sales race in many months of last year, Toyota Raize still attracted a separate customer base with stable sales of 300 units/month.

However, due to market pressure and the presence of Hyundai Venue, this is the lowest sales record for this model since the beginning of 2023, only about 50 units higher than in November 2023.

Hyundai Venue was the only SUV in the segment that recorded positive growth in the first month of this year. Entering February, the newcomer of the group also faced a decrease in sales as the purchasing power of the entire market declined. By the end of the second month of the year, Hyundai Venue sold 147 units, accounting for 19.4% of total sales of the entire segment.

Overall, in the context of the entire market, coupled with competition from neighboring segments, both the low-cost small car and the SUV segment are facing many difficulties.

It is expected that if there are not many changes in prices and discount programs to stimulate consumer demand, the sales results of the two groups will continue to be low, especially the low-cost small car segment including Kia Morning, Hyundai Grand i10 and Toyota Wigo.

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