History does repeat. In September 2021, Ford Motor Co. PH, Inc. recaptured the hotly contested No. 3 rank in total vehicle sales after having lost it to Suzuki PH, Inc. in June, three months earlier. Last month, according to the September 2022 Year-to-Date sales report of the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI), Ford, which had been in 5th place, leapfrogged over No. 4 Suzuki and No. 3 Nissan, to retake the coveted No. 3 spot.
With YTD sales of 16,244 units, Ford only enjoys a 176-unit edge over Nissan (16,068 units sold). But the history repeat thing must be a welcome vindication for Mike Breen, who assumed the post of Ford PH managing director on June 1, 2021, when the American brand was still No. 3 based on CAMPI’s May 2021 YTD sales report — only to lose it later that same month of June.
In an online interview, Breen attributed Ford’s strong retail performance in the third quarter of this year to the successful launch of the next-generation Ranger and Everest, complemented by their efforts to reach more customers via their online reservation portal and the Ford Island Conquest test drive event. He forgot to mention that the Territory, which is made in China but carries the Ford oval badge, is currently the hottest selling compact SUV/crossover with 6,430 units sold YTD September 2022.
Ford PH has managed to stay in the top 5 sales performers’ list despite having offered no passenger car in their lineup for some time now, except for the Mustang sports car. Asked why there are no Ford cars, Breen replied: “Over the last few years, we’ve seen that the market for SUVs and pickups is continuing to grow, more so after the peak of the pandemic. We want to meet the growing consumer demand in these segments and offer a product lineup that will allow us to do just that. Additionally, we want to leverage our global strengths when it comes to pickup trucks and SUVs, and we recognize that these are the same vehicles that Filipino customers and families are looking for.”
As for any plans to introduce Ford electric vehicles (EVs) on the PH market in the near future, Breen said that while Ford always looks for opportunities to bring the right vehicles to each market at the appropriate time, including EVs, there are many factors to consider such as infrastructure, adequate charging stations, government policy that supports EVs and sufficient, long-term consumer demand. But, he added, “We are really encouraged that EVs are gaining more ground in so many countries including the Philippines.”
RANKINGS. Meanwhile, looking at the graph, except for Ford’s recapture of the No. 3 rank, the YTD September 2022 rankings remain essentially the same as at the end of the first semester, with Isuzu, Honda, Geely, Kia, and Foton occupying the lower five spots.
Toyota still reigns supreme with 124,884 units sold, followed by perennial runner-up Mitsubishi with 35,139 units sold. Ever since CAMPI began reporting the sales of its members every month, Toyota Motor PH Corp. and Mitsubishi Motors PH Corp. have always been No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, leaving only the No. 3 spot up for grabs.
The Toyota Vios subcompact sedan continues to be the Philippines’ best-selling motor vehicle across all segments, with 24,086 units sold. And the Toyota Hilux, with 19,144 units sold, is the undisputed leader in the pickup truck segment. The Innova MPV, which is built on the sturdy Hilux truck platform with rear wheel drive, is Toyota’s third best-selling nameplate (12,773 units sold.)
Mitsubishi’s No. 2 rank has been bolstered by the Xpander compact 7-seat MPV, exactly 10,831 units of which were sold YTD September 2022. The L300 (6,319 units sold) and the Mirage G4 (6,317) are Mitsubishi’s second and third best-sellers.
Mitsubishi is not the only top 10 brand that lists a light commercial vehicle (LCV), the L300, as one of its top 3 best-selling models. The Urvan (2,318 units sold) is Nissan’s third best-seller, the Carry (3,008 units sold) is Suzuki’s No. 1 selling model like the Traviz (4,934 units sold) is Isuzu’s, while the K2500 (539 units sold) is Kia’s third best-selling model.
Foton, the 10th brand in the Top 10 List, manufactures and sells mostly LCVs like vans and minivans. The Tornado pickup (754 units sold) is Foton’s second best-selling model while the Gratour minivan (1,255 units sold) and Transvan (321 units sold) are first and third, respectively.
DOUBLE-DIGIT GROWTH. All these figures add up to a total of 248,154 units sold YTD September 2022, equivalent to 29.5% growth, versus the same period in 2021.
For the month of September 2022, total new motor vehicle sales reached 35,282 units, reflecting a 64.2% growth over 21,493 units recorded in the same month last year, CAMPI president Rommel Gutierrez said in a press release.
This follows a year-on-year double-digit growth for seven consecutive months. Gutierrez added that the industry foresees a continued growth momentum in the latter part of the year due to strong domestic demand and the continued easing of pandemic restrictions.
The industry’s sales target for 2022 is 336,000 units, based on the recent growth forecast of 6.5% for the economy this year.
FILE PHOTO: Ford Philippines managing director Mike Breen with members of the Ford Territory Club
