The sub-R300,000 market is a crucial segment in South Africa’s new-car market, as evidenced by the sales figures for December 2025.
The VW Polo Vivo is still the country’s favourite wallet-friendly option, selling 2,024 units over the holiday period.
This is according to a report by The Citizen, based on NAAMSA data.
Second place went to a Chinese entry, namely the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro, which moved 1,658 units.
The Toyota Starlet took third place with 1,608 sales, and the Hyundai Grand i10 came fourth with 1,563.
Closing out the top five is the Suzuki Fronx, which experienced 1,170 dealer success stories last month.
Notably absent from the top tiers is the Suzuki Swift, which only came sixth this time around with 994 purchases.
The Swift normally sells well over 2,000 units per month, so it’s highly unusual to see it this low.
However, the decline is likely because of supply issues rather than a sudden drop in popularity, though Suzuki has not officially confirmed this.
Moving on, the Kia Sonet came seventh with 888 sales, and the Toyota Vitz and Nissan Magnite placed eighth and ninth with 704 and 668 customers, respectively.
The last model to crack the top 10 was the Suzuki Baleno, which added 661 units to the industry’s total/
Speaking of, the top 10 budget models sold a combined 11,938 units, representing 24.3% of the 48,983 vehicles sold in South Africa this December.
Best-selling cars in South Africa
These were the 10 best-selling passenger cars under R300,000 in South Africa in December 2025.
Click on the underlined prices for more information.
1. VW Polo Vivo – 2,024 units
- Starting price – R271,900
2. Chery Tiggo 4 Pro – 1,658 units
- Starting price – R279,900
3. Toyota Starlet – 1,608 units
- Starting price – R268,300
4. Hyundai Grand i10 – 1,563 units
- Starting price – R224,900
5. Suzuki Fronx – 1,170 units
- Starting price – R299,900
6. Suzuki Swift – 994 units
- Starting price – R227,900
7. Kia Sonet – 888 units
- Starting price – R294,995
8. Toyota Vitz – 704 units
- Starting price – R178,800
9. Nissan Magnite – 668 units
- Starting price – R229,900
10. Suzuki Baleno – 661 units
- Starting price – R247,900
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