By Colin Yong

TOYOTA HAS STARTED 2005 in the same way it ended last year – on top of the passenger car sales charts.

Local Toyota distributor Borneo Motors delivered 2,806 cars to customers in January, with more than half of this total accounted for by the Corolla Altis. The company registered a record 23,537 cars in 2004, and by selling nearly 12 percent of this total in one month alone, it has clearly signalled its intention to maintain its number one status.

This sales performance is all the more impressive when you consider that Toyota had what it admitted was a ‘supply problem’ with the Picnic Multi Purpose Vehicle (MPV), which typically sells 150-180 units a month. Only 87 Picnics found homes in January, putting it far behind the segment-leading Honda Odyssey with 237 units.

Still, some car distributors are unimpressed with Toyota’s early spurt. “They might have deliberately held over some registrations until the start of 2005 since they already had record sales in 2004,” the sales manager of a major Japanese brand told CarBuyer. “Doing this would have given them an artificially strong start to this year.”

Maintaining this sales momentum might prove a big challenge for Toyota, though. Its closest rival Hyundai, which shifted 1,555 cars in January, has just launched the new Sonata and also expects to have a facelifted Getz and brand-new Accent in its showrooms by the end of 2005.

Third-placed Nissan put 1,435 cars on the road in January and has at least five new models due this year. Distributor Tan Chong Motor Sales is launching the Latio this weekend (turn to page 8 for a full review), with the Presage and Lafesta MPVs, Murano Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) and 350Z Roadster due to arrive later this year.

On the other hand, Toyota is likely to have the Fortuner, a Thai-built seven-seater SUV, as its only major new release this year. However, the Altis, Vios and Camry still look unstoppable in their respective classes so there is still all to play for in the race for the top spot. 2005 may have just begun, but it’s already shaping up to be an incredibly competitive year for the big three car brands.

New car registrations by model (Jan 2005)
Position - Model - Unit
1 - Toyota Corolla Altis - 1,536
2 - Nissan Sunny - 1,044
3 - Toyota Vios - 670
4 - Toyota Camry - 474
5 - Mitsubishi Lancer - 455
6 - Hyundai Matrix - 449
7 - Hyundai Getz - 373
8 - Mazda 3 - 354
9 - Hyundai Accent - 249
10 - Honda Odyssey - 237