Starlet, Swift and Grand i10 shine in September used car sales

Hatchback trio sales on the rise as Volkswagen Polo and Polo Vivo decline year-on-year. While overall used car sales declined slightly year-on-year in September, three affordable hatchbacks showed remarkable growth. According to AutoTrader data, the Suzuki Swift, Toyota Starlet and Hyundai Grand i10 all recorded double-digit growth last month. The three hatches accounted for 1 965 sales which represents an 18.3% increase over September 2025. The Suzuki Swift were the most popular of the trio, with 832 units sold in September. That is a 17.7% year-on-year increase and was enough to secure fifth place in the national rankings. Toyota Starlet makes waves The Toyota Starlet sales showed a 24.5% increase. In going from 478 to 595 units, the hatch moved up from the 10th to the eighth best-selling pre-owned car. This represents the largest annual improvement among the ten leading models, helping the Starlet climb from tenth to eighth place. Meanwhile, the Hyundai Grand i10 recorded 538 sales last month, a 13% improvement over the 476 units sold in September 2025. It was the 10th best-selling model in September. Interestingly, all three cars had average mileages substantially below the average national figure of 69 991km. The Suzuki Swift averaged 34 748km, the Toyota Starlet 38 269km and the Grand i10 41 565km. At an average selling price of R192 879, the Grand i10 was the cheapest vehicle among South Africa’s ten best-selling used models. The Suzuki Swift’s average selling price was R206 685 and the Toyota’s Starlet’s R228 622. These are all well below the overall national average price of R432 938. VW Polo and Vivo still ahead The trio still trail the Volkswagen Polo and Polo Vivo, which were the third and fourth best-selling pre-owned respectively after the Ford Ranger and Toyota Hilux. But both VW hatches showed year-on-year decline. The 1 247 used Vivos sold last month is 7.7% less than September 2025, while the 1 187 Polos represent a 20.5% decline. The average price of a used Vivo was R215 237 and that of a pre-owned Polo R276 010. The rest of the top 10 best-selling pre-owned cars in September included the Toyota Fortuner (sixth), the Toyota Corolla Cross (seventh) and Isuzu D-Max (ninth).