Johannesburg: Half of the cars sold in South Africa in 2025 have connections to India-- they are either manufactured by companies like Mahindra and Tata, or have components made in India, according to a report by market intelligence firm Lightstone.
Sales figures of the past year have shown Mahindra has taken a leading role in South Africa, especially in its Pikup series, the report said.
Besides, 84 per cent of all the Japanese-branded light vehicles sold in South Africa in 2024 were imported from India, Lightstone said, adding that just 10 per cent were actually built in Japan.
The growing array of Chinese brands is usually seen as the greatest threat to local manufacturers, but the vast majority of South Africa’s imported cars actually originate from India, according to the data from Lightstone.
The high visibility of vehicles from Chinese manufacturers like Haval and Cherry on South African roads due to their popularity among buyers in the past three years creates the impression that they are leading in sales.
However, Chinese imports accounted for just 11 per cent of vehicle sales in 2024, while 36 per cent of all the vehicles sold in South Africa in that year were imported from India, either directly or indirectly by established Japanese and Korean brands. This was just a tad lower than the 37 per cent contribution of locally produced vehicles.
If sales of Pikups and light commercial vehicles are excluded, India’s share grew to almost half of the South African market in the first half of 2025, the Independent Online said on its website, citing Lightstone data.
Lightstone figures for the first five months of 2025 showed that 49 per cent of all passenger vehicle sales were imported from India.
Most of these vehicles emanate from the Maruti Suzuki operations in India. The company also supplies Japanese brand Toyota vehicles such as the Starlet, Starlet Cross, Vitz and Urban Cruiser.
“The growth in vehicle sales originating in India can be attributed to the large number of vehicle manufacturers now producing vehicles in the country, leveraging the relatively cheap cost of labour and overall manufacturing costs,” said Andrew Hibbert, Auto Data Analyst at Lightstone.
Analysts said that the trend is helping buyers in getting price relief, but it is a matter of concern for the local automotive industry. They cited contrasting data of 2009, when around half of the light vehicles sold in South Africa were locally produced. In that year, just 5 per cent of the vehicles were sourced from India.