Chasing a half-million dream
The automotive industry is chasing a dream: to sell half a million vehicles by year-end, something that has never been done before.
That dream suddenly looks attainable, given several factors such as the likelihood that the industry will surpass its total sales target of 468,300 units for 2024, and the fast-approaching Christmas shopping season preceded by the 9th Philippine International Motor Show next month.
And the brand that is making a major contribution to attain that dream, via its consistently highest monthly sales next only to market leader Toyota, is Mitsubishi Motors Corporation Philippines (MMPC).
Actually, MMPC is merely pacing a momentum that it set in 2023, when its sales per month beginning January that year never fell below 5,000 units. In March 2023, MMPC sold 7,194 units, the highest sales in a month ever achieved by a brand except Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation, whose 46.12 percent market share as of year-to-date June 2024 is way beyond surpassing, let alone equaling.
Last July, MMPC topped that 7,194 score by selling 8,000 vehicles, the highest monthly sales record in its history. As a result, MMPC’s market share rose that month to 20.3 percent from 18.8 percent last June when it sold 7,453 units. The July sales reflected a 7.3 percent improvement over June’s.
ABOVE THE BENCHMARK. Last month, MMPC’s sales dipped slightly to 7,914 units, but it was still way above the 5,000 units benchmark set in 2023. Year-to-date August 2024, MMPC has already sold 58,513 vehicles. Compare that to the 42,599 units MMPC sold YTD in June (the latest joint sales report released by the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the PH, Inc. and Truck Manufacturers Association).
MMPC’s success in driving sales volume growth was proven when it recorded 81,473 units sold in the fiscal year 2023 (April 2023 to March 2024) to secure 18.5 percent market share in the industry. That represented a sales growth of 34 percent from its 60,630 units sales in FY 2022.
MMPC’s outstanding sales performance can be attributed to many strategic marketing factors, such as the introduction of all-new models this year like the Triton pickup truck that was launched in January to replace the aging Strada, and more recently, the XForce compact SUV. What’s more, during FY 2023, MMPC increased the production capacity of its plant in Sta. Rosa, Laguna, enabling it to locally assemble and sell more CKD (completely knocked down) units.
BASES COVERED. When it comes to the range of automotive categories offered, MMPC has all the bases covered. Passenger cars? The locally produced Mitsubishi Mirage subcompact is MMPC’s No. 1 best-seller, with 18,075 units sold YTD August 2024, representing 31 percent of total MMPC sales.
Multipurpose vehicle (MPV)? The Mitsubishi Xpander is a compact 7-seater MPV that has been certified by CAMPI as the country’s best-selling MPV. Year-to-date, MMPC has sold 17,801 units of the Xpander, reflecting 30 percent of MMPC sales and making it the brand’s No. 2 best-seller.
Light commercial vehicle (LCV)? Nine thousand seventy-five units of the locally produced Mitsubishi L300 have been sold so far, representing 16 percent of total MMPC sales and making it the brand’s No. 3 best-seller.
Also in the LCV category, MMPC offers the Montero Sport SUV (7,016 units sold so far); the newly introduced Triton pickup, of which 5,273 units have been sold YTD; the Strada pickup, of which 517 units have been sold so far; and the Outlander PHEV (plug-in hybrid electric vehicle), of which three units have been sold. The XForce compact SUV, although introduced on the market only a month or two ago, has already sold 733 units.
All told, 2024 looks like a banner year for Mitsubishi as the industry enters the last quarter chasing its half-million dream.
