Features / 18 February 2025 / Michael Taylor

Where South Africa’s affordable cars come from

The vast majority of affordable cars sold in South Africa are not produced locally, but are sourced from India and China.

It’s no secret that car prices have shot through the roof in recent years, as more than three quarters of all the models on sale now ask for more than half a million rand.

While a large portion of these high prices can be attributed to South Africa’s substantial import duties, the local automotive industry is not producing many affordable models, either.

There are seven legacy original equipment manufacturers in South Africa – BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Ford, Toyota, Isuzu, VW – only one of which produces a passenger car that retails for less than R300,000.

The model in question is the VW Polo Vivo, which is exclusively made for our market at the company’s factory in Kariega in the Eastern Cape.

Brands like Toyota and Nissan do have entry-level options in the form of vehicles like the Vitz and the Magnite, but these are not produced here. Instead, they are imported from overseas.

More specifically, the vast majority of affordable cars in South Africa are sourced from India and can be found across a variety of brands from Suzuki to Toyota, Hyundai, and Kia.

Chinese badges such as Chery have also stepped up to the plate in recent years, selling generously kitted SUVs with potent engines for a significantly lower rate than competing legacy brands.

The influx of cheap Chinese or Indian-sourced cars has become so prevalent, in fact, that the CEO of Toyota South Africa Motors, Andrew Kirby, recently issued a warning to the government that the local industry needs to be protected from imported models creating an uneven playing field.

The concern is that, until something is done to aid the local industry and slash car prices, it is likely that motorists will continue to buy imported vehicles that ostensibly offer more than their well-established counterparts for a lower cost.

Hard to compete

Below is a list of South Africa’s 10 best-selling budget cars from January 2025.

Only one of the 10 models – the Polo Vivo – is locally made, while another hails from China, and the remaining eight are all brought over from India, illustrating the dominance that the sub-continent has over the sub-R300,000 market in South Africa.

Click on the underlined prices for more information.