Seven in 10 vehicles built in SA were exported in 2025
In 2025, South Africa exported 412 510 passenger and light commercial vehicles. It is 7% more than in 2019. Exports continue to dominate the sector: for every ten vehicles produced in South Africa last year, seven were sold overseas.
Germany is now the biggest destination. One in every five exported vehicles went there in 2025, after Germany overtook the UK as South Africa’s top export market in 2023. Before then, as many as one in four locally produced vehicles were shipped to the UK. The reason the UK stopped importing as many cars as it used to from South Africa is because the UK is phasing out petrol and diesel cars in favour of electric vehicles.
Unfortunately, South Africa is still heavily focussed on producing these types of vehicles.
South Africa manufactures vehicles for brands including BMW, Ford, Toyota, Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz and Isuzu, with production concentrated in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape. While Nissan has long produced vehicles locally, it announced in January 2026 that it would sell its Rosslyn plant in Pretoria to Chery South Africa.
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