Why you can forget EOFY car sales: Huge May will see most June bargains vanish

May was the biggest new-car sale month in a bumper 2021.

May has proven the biggest sales month so far in 2021, as new-car sales - led by the Toyota HiLux, RAV4, LandCruiser and the Ford Ranger - continue to soar, spelling the end of most EOFY deals in Australia.

A total 100,809 new vehicles found homes across Australia in May, putting the country's new-car market on track to clear one million deliveries in 2021.

The result is a total turnaround from last year's Covid-impacted sales results. In May 2020, just 59,894 were sold across Australia - meaning sales are up some 68.3 per cent.

Read more about new car sales

Toyota dominates record May 2021 new-car sales as HiLux, RAV4, Land Cruiser, Prado and Corolla all place in Top 10

Top EOFY 2021 new car deals: Mazda, Hyundai, Kia, Nissan and Ford commit to discounts despite stock shortages

But last year was an anomaly, so perhaps more important is that sales are up even on May 2019 numbers, when 92,561 cars found homes.

With sales booming, and stock levels still incredibly tight, the results pretty much spell the end for traditional EOFY sales in 2021, with most brands facing several-month delays on popular products, as opposed to having dealer lots full of cars to shift.

"Demand is outstripping supply," one car company told CarsGuide, suggesting that any kind traditional EOFY bargains will be hard to come by.

Hard, but not impossible: Mazda, Kia, Hyundai, Nissan and Ford have committed to discounts, defying shortages.

Used car prices in Australia - and around the world - have been increasing, too. According to data from Moody’s Analytics, used-vehicles prices in Q1 2021 were 37 per cent higher than the pre-pandemic high set in February 2020, and those numbers have only continued to climb.

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