South Africa’s new vehicle market ended the third quarter on a strong note. According to industry body naamsa 61,645 new vehicles were sold locally in September 2026 up 12.7% from 54,706 a year earlier.

That growth came in a tough month for buyers. The Reserve Bank raised the repo rate by 25 basis points to 7.25% which pushed the prime lending rate to 10.75%. Higher oil prices are feeding inflation which edged up to 4.4% in August. Even so buyers kept coming thanks to more brands and models and to competitive pricing and finance deals.

How the segments did

• Passenger cars: 44,291 units, up 14.7%. Car rental companies made up 18.4% of these sales.
• Light commercial vehicles (bakkies and minibuses): 14,361 units, up 9.6%.
• Medium commercial vehicles: 789 units, up 3.4%.
• Heavy trucks and buses: 2,204 units, down slightly from 2,229 a year ago.

Exports were the weak spot. At 31,473 units they fell 18.8% compared with September last year.

Electrified vehicles keep growing

Between January and August 18,945 new energy vehicles (NEVs) were sold. That already beats the 16,703 sold in all of 2025 and roughly one in twenty new vehicles sold this year is electrified.

Conventional hybrids still lead with 49.6% of NEV sales. Plug-in hybrids follow with 36.5% and battery electric vehicles with 13.8%. Plug-ins and battery electrics together now make up just over half of NEV sales. By August plug-in hybrid sales (6,919) and battery electric sales (2,622) had both passed their full-year 2025 totals.

A sign of wider strength?

Manufacturing also showed signs of life. The Absa Purchasing Managers’ Index rose 4.9 points to 50.7 in September and moved back above the 50-point line that separates growth from contraction after three months below it. naamsa CEO Dr Mncane Mthunzi said strong sales and a better PMI suggest underlying demand is firmer than the economic pressures would imply. naamsa cautions that it is too early to call a lasting manufacturing recovery.