Why Toyota Has Led South Africa's Car Market for 47 Years
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Motoring Today is the show for South African petrolheads who want real insight into the cars, trucks, motorbikes, motorsport and industry stories that matter. Host Roger McLeery sits down with Toyota South Africa's Product Communications Manager Mzo Witbooi to dig into how Toyota has held the top spot in the South African market for 47 consecutive years - and why no rival has come close.
Roger and Mzo cover Toyota's staggering global output of 11.8 million vehicles a year, Toyota South Africa's current market share of around 23 percent, and the threat posed by a flood of Chinese brands entering the local market. Mzo explains Toyota's deliberate multi-pathway powertrain strategy - continuing to invest in internal combustion engines (ICE), hybrid electric vehicles (HEV), battery electric vehicles (BEV) and hydrogen fuel cell technology simultaneously - rather than betting everything on a single technology as rivals in Europe have done at the cost of hundreds of thousands of jobs.
The conversation covers the full product offensive Toyota South Africa has executed in 2025: the updated Corolla Cross GRS (locally produced at the Prospecton plant), the Land Cruiser FJ, the new RAV4, the bZ4X electric, the new Hilux, and the forthcoming Lexus ES. Mzo also lets slip - on air - that a new Fortuner is roughly a year away, following a 10.8 billion rand investment into the IMV production line at Prospecton.
The episode explores Toyota Gazoo Racing in South Africa, the GR Yaris, GR Corolla and GR Supra, and how motorsport technology trickles down to production vehicles. Roger and Mzo reflect on the Prospecton factory flood disaster and how Akio Toyoda's personal response - sending engineers from around the world within days - defined Toyota's corporate character. They also discuss Toyota's near-total dominance of the minibus taxi segment, the Hilux as South Africa's best-selling vehicle, the 220-strong dealer network, and CEO Andrew Kirby's decade leading Toyota South Africa.
Roger and Mzo cover Toyota's staggering global output of 11.8 million vehicles a year, Toyota South Africa's current market share of around 23 percent, and the threat posed by a flood of Chinese brands entering the local market. Mzo explains Toyota's deliberate multi-pathway powertrain strategy - continuing to invest in internal combustion engines (ICE), hybrid electric vehicles (HEV), battery electric vehicles (BEV) and hydrogen fuel cell technology simultaneously - rather than betting everything on a single technology as rivals in Europe have done at the cost of hundreds of thousands of jobs.
The conversation covers the full product offensive Toyota South Africa has executed in 2025: the updated Corolla Cross GRS (locally produced at the Prospecton plant), the Land Cruiser FJ, the new RAV4, the bZ4X electric, the new Hilux, and the forthcoming Lexus ES. Mzo also lets slip - on air - that a new Fortuner is roughly a year away, following a 10.8 billion rand investment into the IMV production line at Prospecton.
The episode explores Toyota Gazoo Racing in South Africa, the GR Yaris, GR Corolla and GR Supra, and how motorsport technology trickles down to production vehicles. Roger and Mzo reflect on the Prospecton factory flood disaster and how Akio Toyoda's personal response - sending engineers from around the world within days - defined Toyota's corporate character. They also discuss Toyota's near-total dominance of the minibus taxi segment, the Hilux as South Africa's best-selling vehicle, the 220-strong dealer network, and CEO Andrew Kirby's decade leading Toyota South Africa.
Chapters
- 00:00 Welcome to Motoring Today
- 01:14 Introducing Mzo Witbooi
- 01:55 Market Share and the Chinese Brand Challenge
- 02:57 47 Years at the Top - Toyota's South African Legacy
- 03:48 Corporate Citizenship and Community Involvement
- 04:32 220 Dealerships and the Reliability Reputation
- 05:34 Sales Figures and the Hilux Phenomenon
- 06:09 24 Models, 805 Variants - Covering Every Segment
- 07:33 2025 Product Launches: Corolla Cross to Lexus ES
- 08:38 The EV Landscape and Toyota's Multi-Pathway Strategy
- 09:39 Hydrogen Testing on South African Roads
- 10:34 Toyota Gazoo Racing and the GR Performance Range
- 12:06 The Origins of Gazoo and Akio Toyoda's Racing Secret
- 13:51 The Prospecton Flood - How Toyota Responded
- 16:09 The 10.8 Billion Rand IMV Investment and New Fortuner Hint
- 17:20 GR Racing for Enthusiasts and the Motoring Press
- 18:32 Naming the Show - Motoring Today is Born
