Toyota Camry 2015 News

Australians may not have bought a record number of new cars last year after all — and the sales push has left thousands of buyers short-changed on their warranty coverage.Contrary to widespread belief, new-car sales are not calculated according to vehicle registration data supplied by government authorities.Instead, the car industry collates data supplied by manufacturers using an “honesty system”.However, News Corp Australia has found widespread variation in the way car companies report their monthly sales figures, and in some cases it leaves buyers with less warranty on their new car.The cars are not counted twice, but tens of thousands of vehicles each year are not delivered until months after they were reported as being sold — and after the warranty period has started.Figures for January show the clearest example yet of how the system works.On the reporting trailIn December, Toyota reported a staggering 5321 Camry sales — more than double its average monthly rate and enough to be top seller for the month.But in January, the Camry tally fell to just 503 deliveries; the sharpest month-to-month sales drop of any mainstream car and a fraction of its monthly average.Confidential figures obtained by News Corp Australia show almost 50 per cent of the Camry sedans reported as sold in December were “undriven demonstrators”. The industry average for all demonstrator vehicles is about 10 per cent of the annual volume.Toyota dealers who spoke to News Corp Australia under condition of anonymity said they are struggling to clear the backlog of cars declared as sold in December.“Toyota had a big sales target to hit in 2015,” said a veteran Toyota dealer. “They couldn’t get enough supply of other models.”On the plus side, customers got a sharp deal on “undriven demonstrator” models, about $5000 off the retail price.But on the downside, Toyota has confirmed the warranty has already started on Toyota Camrys reported as sold in December — even though the vehicles may not be sold to retail customers until later this year.The ACCC hadn’t responded as this article was published.* Car dealers are offered incentives at the end of the month to hit sales targets. They are told to declare a car as sold or risk missing out on the bonus.* The car companies then report the figures to the industry lobby group, the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.* The FCAI data is used by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the Reserve Bank, Commsec and others to monitor consumer behaviour.* The “called cars” or “pre-reported cars” are either registered and sold as demonstrators in the following months. Or they sit in storage unregistered until the dealer can find a real buyer.* In some cases, the warranty starts the moment the car is declared as sold, even if the car is not registered. It means some buyers are getting less warranty than they were expecting with a brand-new car.* The cars are not counted twice, but the early reporting distorts the state of the new-car market each month.

We're hungry for imports - SUVs above all - and cool on big sedans.

It's going to be a happy start to the new year for anyone in the market for a new car.

Here's a recap of the year's stars, with impressive arrivals and value added to staples.

The humble homegrown sedan may have been gobbled up by the all-conquering SUV but car makers are not prepared to give up on the family staple just yet.

Forget Holden v Ford, the new car battle is Toyota Corolla versus Mazda3, and the Toyota now has an almost unassailable lead.

Australians are continuing to gorge themselves on new cars, taking advantage of low interest rates before currency pressures force prices to rise later in the year.

The June figure of 125,850 is 6.4 per cent more than the same month last year and leaves the industry on track to eclipse the annual high point of 1,136,227 sales in 2013.The results, obtained by News Corp Australia ahead of their official release at noon today, show that NSW and Queensland were the states best placed to benefit from end-of-financial year deals, with sales up 12 per cent and 11 per cent respectively.They cancelled out a small reverse in South Australia and plummeting sales in Western Australia, where demand fell by 8 per cent.The June bonanza was fuelled by small-business buyers racing to exploit tax incentives in the budget.Businesses bought 10.5 per cent more vehicles — almost 1000 a week — than in June last year and snapped up almost as many SUVs as traditional light commercials.They also charged into small cars, helping Hyundai emerge with the month's bestseller in its i30, with 5520 sales.It was enough to outshine strong demand for usual small car favourites the Toyota Corolla and Mazda3, although they both enjoyed gains of 16 per cent compared with last June.Luxury brands enjoyed a bumper month in what is already a runaway yearImports overwhelmed locally made models as the industry prepares to shut its Australian assembly lines over the next two years.Ford's Falcon, despite a freshen-up six months ago, continued its slide down shopping lists with just 530 buyers, and Holden's Commodore also went south with sales down 12 per cent.Toyota's Melbourne-made Camry, with 2600 buyers, was the only local vehicle in positive territory but the industry overall now accounts for fewer than one in every 12 vehicles bought.Luxury brands enjoyed a bumper month in what is already a runaway year, with the German trio of Mercedes, BMW and Audi leading the charge.Mercedes's mid-size C-Class is the luxury bestseller, with 890 buyers last month and almost 4860 year-to-date, followed by the Audi A3 and BMW X5.Meanwhile, Porsche is on track for its most successful year down under, fuelled by the clamour for its mid-size Macan SUV, with sales up 71 per cent for the month and more than 60 per cent for the year.

A cheap and cheerful car brand introduced to Australia in 1986 by a savvy Perth car dealer and colourful businessman, the late Alan Bond, has done the unthinkable.Hyundai has shocked the Australian motor industry by becoming the top-selling car last month. It is the first time the South Korean brand has been in the top spot since the plucky Hyundai Excel knocked the Holden Commodore off its perch in June 1998.Driven by a special offer of $19,990 drive-away with automatic transmission and a rear-view camera -- about $7000 off full price -- the Hyundai i30 hatchback outsold the reigning champions the Toyota Corolla and Mazda3 in June, according to preliminary figures.More than three out of every four Hyundai i30s sold were of the cut-price $19,990 model, dealer sources have told News Corp Australia.Sales of utes were also strong in the rush to the end of the financial yearMore than 5500 Hyundai i30 hatchbacks were delivered last month, easily eclipsing the tally of 4150 Toyota Corollas and 4130 Mazda3s.The result is more remarkable once you take into account the Hyundai i30 tally is for hatchback sales alone, whereas the Toyota and Mazda totals include both sedans and hatches.The sedan version of the Hyundai i30 is sold with another badge, otherwise the leading margin would have been even greater (more than 680 Hyundai Elantra sedans were sold in June).Sales of utes were also strong in the rush to the end of the financial year, filling three of the Top 10 places and the Toyota HiLux claiming second outright.Industry insiders believe the car industry is on track for a new record yearIn other upsets, the Volkswagen Golf, driven by sharp discounting to $24,990 drive-away, edged ahead of the Toyota Camry and just behind the Holden Commodore.Seven of the Top 10 brands posted significant sales gains, but Holden, Ford and Nissan were down on the same month last year.The Ford Falcon was once again outsold by the Mercedes-Benz C Class (530 deliveries versus 900).Figures for the total market are not due to be published until Friday, however industry insiders believe the car industry is on track for a new record year.Record low interest rates -- rather than the $20,000 tax incentive for small businesses announced in the latest Federal Budget -- are the driving force behind the sales surge, say dealer sources."People are still trying to get their head around what the $20,000 tax break means for their business, but they also need to have the money to spend in the first place," said a finance expert at a leading metropolitan Toyota dealership."The biggest driver is interest rates. People are figuring out they can pay less than what they were paying three or four years ago and get a brand-new car. Or they can make the same repayments and get a dearer car."Figures supplied to News Corp Australia show that the weekly repayments on a $20,000 car today can be as low as $387 per month, or $89 a week, in a best-case scenario of 6 per cent interest.But three years ago, a $20,000 car typically cost about $486 per month, with the buyer paying more than $9000 in interest over five years, versus $3200 in interest over the same period today.Alternatively, the repayments of $486 per month at today's low interest rates will buy a $25,000 car rather than a $20,000 car.Meanwhile, the industry is still coming to grips with Hyundai’s shock result just 29 years after arriving in Australia.Hyundai cars were introduced locally in 1986 by Perth car dealer John Hughes — who went on to become the company’s biggest retail outlet in the southern hemisphere from 1997 to 2003 — with financial backing by Alan Bond.But with Bond Corporation suffering financial difficulties, the distribution rights in Australia were then handled by a Singapore-based company from 1990 until Hyundai established a head office locally in 2003.Indeed, Hyundai is now a challenger for third place outright if it can overtake Holden and push the former Number One to fourth by the end of the year.Holden is currently third place behind Toyota and Mazda when the year-to-date tally is calculated, but is locked in a bumper-to-bumper battle with Hyundai.Hyundai has been ahead of Holden for three of the first six months of this year, and the two brands are separated by just 1100 sales.After being beaten by Hyundai in May, Holden leapt ahead in the June sales tally thanks to the biggest month ever for the Trax baby SUV, Captiva5 compact SUV, the Colorado ute, and Colorado7 seven-seater.It was also the best result in 18 months for the Barina hatch and the Commodore ute, while the Captiva7 posted its highest sales in a year.Hyundai i30 - 5520Toyota HiLux - 4280Toyota Corolla - 4150Mazda3 - 4130Mitsubishi Triton - 3530Ford Ranger - 3370Holden Commodore - 2770Volkswagen Golf - 2680Toyota Camry - 2600Mazda CX5 - 2510Toyota - 21,500 - up 3.3 per centHolden - 11,930 - down 3.3 per centMazda - 11,520 - up 23 per centHyundai - 11,005 - up 10 per centMitsubishi - 9015 - up 8.9 per centFord - 7250 - down 16.8 per centVolkswagen - 7105 - up 7.7 per centNissan - 6645 - down 16.9 per centHonda - 5310 - up 70 per centSubaru - 4500 - up 16.9 per cent * Preliminary figures. Official VFACTS data published Friday 3 July, 2015.

Toyota has confirmed full details for the new Camry mid-size sedan, with sharpened pricing across the range.The final Camry to be produced in Australia will once again be available with either petrol or petrol-electric hybrid drivetrains, the Camry range now starts at $26,490, a drop of $4000 from the starting list price of the outgoing model.The range has also been expanded to seven models, with the addition of a third hybrid variant.The starting price for the hybrid range is down by a substantial $5000For 2015, the Toyota Camry range will start with the $26,490 Altise before moving up to the $29,490 Atara S and $31,990 Atara SX, before topping out with the Atara SL at $37,440.The inclusion of a hybrid Altise variant has brought the starting price for the petrol-electric range down by a substantial $5000 to $30,490, with the $32,490 Atara S and $40,440 Atara SL rounding off the model range.Equipment in the Altise includes a reversing camera, 6.1-inch multimedia display and 6 speaker sound system, while it rides on 16-inch alloys.The Altise Hybrid adds keyless entry/ignition as well as dual-zone air-con.Both Atara S models add rear parking sensors, an upgraded multimedia system with voice commands and soon-to-be-added Pandora internet radio as well as 17-inch alloys.Sitting in the middle is the sports-flavoured and non-hybrid Atara SX. The SX features unique styling, rear lip spoiler, leather accented seats and 18-inch alloys.At the top of the range is the Atara SL trim level. This adds safety features not available in the rest of the range including pre-collision alert with automatic braking, lane departure warning, rear cross traffic alert and blind spot monitoring.The Atara SL also includes active cruise control, 7-inch touchscreen with satnav and 10-speaker sound, auto wipers and high beam and front parking sensors.The petrol-powered Camry carries-over the same 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine from the outgoing model, paired to a six-speed automatic transmission. In the Altise, the powerplant will produce 133kW/231Nm, while a slightly different tune in the Atara models produce 135kW/235Nm.In the hybrid, the petrol engine's outputs are only 118kW/213Nm, however the addition of a 105kW/270Nm electric motor lifts the combined output to 151kW. Power is put to the ground via a CVT automatic transmission.Fuel efficiency for both drivetrains remains unchanged from the outgoing model with the petrol engine achieving 7.8L/100km on the combined cycle, while the hybrid system achieves 5.2L/100km.