Affordability is the name of the game if you want to compete in South Africa’s car market, as evidenced by the sales figures for January 2025.
It was a good month for vehicles of all shapes and sizes, but the standout was undoubtedly the under-R300,000 segment, where several models achieved impressive figures.
Case in point is the Suzuki Swift, which managed to beat the long-running Toyota Hilux for the title of the country’s most popular car with 2,628 units.
It’s not hard to imagine why the Swift is a success, either, as it recently entered a new generation while keeping a low cost of entry at just R219,900.
It’s a similar story for other top sellers like the locally-made VW Polo Vivo, which sold 2,549 units, and the Toyota Starlet with 2,180 sales.
These three hatchbacks managed to significantly outperform the next best-selling passenger car, the Toyota Corolla Cross, which had 1,226 customers last month.
Other popular budget picks include the Hyundai Grand i10 and Chery Tiggo 4 Pro, which sold 1,212 and 1,122 units, respectively.
This means the Tiggo 4 is the number one choice for a budget SUV, placing ahead of the Toyota Starlet Cross (1,050 units) and Kia Sonet (830 units).
The remainder of the top 10 includes the Toyota Vitz with 825 buyers, and two more crossovers with the Suzuki Fronx’s 771 sales and the Nissan Magnite’s 744.
South Africa’s budget favourites
These were the 10 best-selling cars under R300,000 in South Africa in January 2025.
Click on the underlined prices for more information.
1. Suzuki Swift – 2,628 units
- Starting price – R219,900
2. VW Polo Vivo – 2,549 units
- Starting price – R271,900
3. Toyota Starlet – 2,180 units
- Starting price – R258,000
4. Hyundai Grand i10 – 1,212 units
- Starting price – R224,900
5. Chery Tiggo 4 Pro – 1,122 units
- Starting price – R269,900
6. Toyota Starlet Cross – 1,050 units
- Starting price – R299,900
7. Kia Sonet – 830 units
- Starting price – R299,995
8. Toyota Vitz – 825 units
- Starting price – R189,900
9. Suzuki Fronx – 771 units
- Starting price – R298,900
10. Nissan Magnite – 744 units
- Starting price – R224,900
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