The opening of imports shows the first change: SUVs are gaining more users than cars and minivans

“the behavior Car market They appear to follow similar patterns of sea movement, with more permanent cycles of rising and falling tides, and with the typical undulations of movement that never stop. If you take a photo, that photo will be just a frame, not the full movie, but the movie starts playing. Show mode change“A senior industry executive explained to information A few days ago, when sales figures for February had not yet been published.

The reference is provided for clarification One of the most obvious curves Which the automobile industry can currently show, namely Flow of domestic and imported car sales In the local market. Imports, in turn, are divided into imports from factories located in the country, the majority of which reached more than 98% in 2023, and from independent importers or companies affiliated with brands that do not have local or regional production.

This is a curve that updates SIOMAA of the Automobile Dealers Association (ACARA), it shows several years ago that the trend has completely reversed compared to the previous trend. The first measurement they take as a reference is what happened in January 2016, when the market imported, in similar numbers, as many cars as it manufactured to meet Argentine consumer demand. However, as of March of the same year, The curves started to separate Until after a year and a half, it has a vehicle fleet consisting of a 70% imported cars and 30% locally manufactured.

July 2020 was the last time this pattern remained in these proportions, which had some ups and downs at the end of 2018 and the beginning of 2020, but it had been since the middle of that year, already with… Government of Alberto Fernandez In full force, and also in the worst moments of the epidemic, which The import curve began to decline The Argentine car market share is on the rise.

In just one year, the curves intersected again and the equation was reversed to the limit September 2023 To the highest point where 77% of new cars sold in Argentina were produced locally, and 23% came from abroad. The economic policy of the government, which he administers Sergio Massa This change in situation was caused mainly by management WalkImport permits and the lack of dollars for payment abroad.

he Changing the economic model Proposed by management Javier Mileycausing the curves to converge again, and in February 2024, with only three months of management, the market ratio was approximately 58% are national products and 42% are imported. How this movement affects sales differences for different models is the most interesting part of the study.

“the The Argentine industry manufactures the same number of pickups, and only four SUVs From sectors different from each other. While imports were highly restricted, manufacturers had to manage those small quotas they gave us, to bring in the products that sold the most and offered the best margin. So, although you can choose which cars you want to bring, the majority have decided to go for the more affordable cars, which are the ones that the public can purchase more easily, leaving the high-end or high-end models for a better time. .

Numbers for 2023 Confirm that idea. The market has been segmented into different segments as follows: 43% of total annual sales were carsWhere sedans and hatchbacks come in; he 28% were pickup trucks, combines medium, compact, full and girls size; he 20% were SUVs And crossover; And the rest 9% remained for trucks Utilitarianism, divided between large and medium.

Considering that Argentina makes both Cars Best sellers, the Fiat Cronos and Peugeot 208, in addition to the Renault Sandero, Logan, and Chevrolet Cruze (no longer produced this year), 64% of cars sold in 2023 were produced locally. The main imported cars were Toyota Etios, Yaris and Corolla, Volkswagen Polo, Virtus and Vento, Chevrolet Onix, Citroen C3, Nissan Versa and Sentra.

between the Pick-upThe calculation is much simpler, because since 5 of the medium ones are manufactured in Argentina, the rest are imported from Brazil and Mexico, and the calculation indicates that 91% of sales were national products.

However, among SUVs This is where most of the differences are. Chevrolet Tracker, Volkswagen Taos, Toyota SW4 and Renault Stepway are produced at national factories. Among these four models, Half of the garden was not reached in this part, remaining at 47%Which indicates that this is where the market “map” could change for this year with imports being allowed.

And to 2024 numbers We have to go back then to make sure that, had it not been for the brakes of the past four years, the proportions would have begun to change. The distribution of categories calculated for January and February shows that sales Car prices fell from 43% to 42% Of cars, that Trucks decreased from 28 to 26%and that from The proportion of SUVs increased from 20 to 25%. Remainingly, the proportion of boxcars increased from 9 to 7%.

The explanation for the change with SUVs lies in the division of models. More Toyota Corolla Cross, Jeep Renegade, Ford Territory enteredand cars like Peugeot 3008 or Hyundai CretaWhich did not appear with significant sales in 2023. The variation is not large, but it also accompanies the trend, and within the SUV category, the percentage of participation of locally manufactured products, decreased from 47 to 45% During the first two months of 2024.