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The full-sized family favourite has been mauled by a pair of baby- class contenders this year and, with just one month until the end of the showroom stoush for 2011, it trails the compact Mazda3 by 301 sales.
The Toyota Corolla actually topped the sales charts in November for its fourth monthly win of 2011, with the 3 also trumping the Commodore again after the Holden was only fifth in October.
The November results reported in official VFacts sales figures show Holden and Mazda trading the year-to-date lead again in a reflection of the touch-and-go battle between the two cars throughout the year.
The 3 has topped two individual months, far less than the Commodore, but the focus now is on the final numbers on December 31.
In November, Toyota sold 3731 Corollas, Mazda managed 3480 with the Mazda3 and the Commodore was well behind on 2808.
Despite the closeness of the battle, and the importance of Number One bragging rights, both Holden and Mazda said they are not focussed on the showroom numbers.
"We've said all along that it's going to be a tough fight. But our focus is on profitability," said Shayna Welsh of Holden.
"At the end of the day, the Mazda3 is secure in its position as Australia's number one small car. Whether it's number one overall is not something we're greatly concerned about," said Steve Maciver of Mazda Australia.
"Consistency has been the key to Mazda3's success. Some of our competitors have been up and down, but that's the key to this success."
The results through 2011 reflect the overall downsizing in Australian driveways, with the Commodore hit hard and the Ford Falcon battling through a huge double-digit decline that is almost certain to result in a successor that is designed and developed overseas.
But Holden has not given up after running a number of value-added sales incentives this year with the Commodore.
"We're not going to chase sales in December. (But ) it could still be 16 years," Welsh said.
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