Australia’s new vehicle market has rebounded in the first half of 2023, showing growth of 8.2 percent over the same period in 2022. It was the strongest H1 result since 2018.
Some interesting developments, as shown in the table below, include:
- Number one brand Toyota fell 24 percent in volume due to weak supply, causing its market share to fall to 15.9 share points – well below its benchmark of 20 share points.
- The Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger remain the top two models, with the Isuzu D-Max in fourth place. The number three vehicle YTD is the Tesla Model Y.
- Western Australia and Queensland are the two fastest growing regions by percentage.
- More than 43,000 electric vehicles were sold, for a record 7.4 percent market share. It was only 1.8 percent at this point last year!
- Hybrid EVs outsold (38,313), largely due to Toyota’s lack of supply of the RAV4, Camry and others.
- Chinese cars rose 93.1 percent to 95,852 units, led by the Tesla Model Y and Model 3, as well as domestic brands MG, GWM, LDV and BYD.
First half of each sales year:
- H1 of 2023: 581,759 units
- H1 of 2022: 537,858 units
- H1 2021: 567,468 units
- H1 of 2020: 442,415 units
- H1 2019: 554,466 units
- H1 2018: 605,522 units
- H1 2017: 599,552 units
- H1 of 2016: 598,140 units
- H1 of 2015: 578,427 units
- H1 2014: 559,950 units
Brand
Toyota was well ahead of Mazda in the beginning but had to come under pressure in the second half as it wanted to pass 200,000 units – as was its domestic demand.
Kia (third) remains ahead of big brother Hyundai (fifth), with Ford sitting in between.
Mitsubishi is struggling for supplies and its Triton core is about to be replaced, so the 26 percent drop makes sense. But still a bad decision.
MG and Tesla showed a dynamic change, both reaching the top 10, ahead of Subaru and Volkswagen. GWM (including Haval) is getting closer…
VW, which benefited from better European supplies than in previous years, managed to increase its sales by 61 percent from a low base.
There are several new entrants that have joined the market since this point in 2022, including BYD, Chery and Cupra.
Sales list by brand throughout H1 of 2023:
| BRAND | YTD SALE | CHANGES BEYOND H1 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Toyota | 92,235 | 24% off |
| Mazda | 50,424 | up 1% |
| Kia | 39,160 | Down 0.7% |
| Ford | 38,182 | Up 33.7% |
| Hyundai | 37,707 | Down 1.2% |
| Mitsubishi | 30,849 | Down 26.1% |
| MG | 26,692 | Up 8.9% |
| Tesla | 25,577 | Up 449.7% |
| Subaru | 22,502 | Up 32.4% |
| Volkswagen | 20,970 | Up 60.6% |
| Isuzu Ute | 20,357 | Up 8.3% |
| GWM | 17,548 | Up 105.1% |
| Nissan | 17,278 | Up 13.3% |
| Mercedes-Benz cars | 12,671 | Down 12.3% |
| BMW | 12,502 | Up 5.1% |
| LDV | 11,250 | Up 56.8% |
| Audi | 9336 | Up 48% |
| Suzuki | 8814 | Down 21.6% |
| Lexus | 6910 | Up 75.5% |
| Honda | 6758 | Down 11.3% |
| Volvo cars | 6290 | up 9% |
| BYD | 6196 | New in the market |
| Renault | 4425 | Down 12.7% |
| Ram | 4156 | Up 61.6% |
| Skoda | 3967 | Up 20.7% |
| Land Rover | 3714 | Up 42.8% |
| Ssangyong | 3319 | up 130% |
| Porsche | 3231 | Up 2.2% |
| Jeep | 2669 | Down 22.3% |
| Mercedes-Benz vans | 2418 | Up 23.7% |
| Mini | 2136 | Up 30.5% |
| Chevrolet | 1713 | Up 70.8% |
| Cherry | 1612 | New in the market |
| Cupra | 1586 | New in the market |
| Peugeot | 1186 | Up 17.3% |
| Polestar | 1147 | Up 104.1% |
| Incident | 871 | Up 88.1% |
| Fiat Professional | 595 | Up 77.1% |
| Fiat | 413 | Up 39.1% |
| Maserati | 319 | Up 1.9% |
| Alfa Romeo | 267 | Down 9.5% |
| Jaguar | 238 | Down 42.4% |
| Citroën | 116 | Down 32.6% |
| Bentley | 110 | Down 7.6% |
| Ferrari | 105 | Down 0.9% |
| Aston Martin | 87 | Up 27.9% |
| Lamborghini | 71 | Up 61.4% |
| Lotus | 52 | Down 16.1% |
| McLaren | 46 | Up 64.3% |
| Rolls Royce | 21 | Down 36.4% |
model
The list of 25 best-selling models looks different this year, although the top two (HiLux and Ranger) are the usual leaders.
The Tesla Model Y (third) and Model 3 (eighth) both top their segments regardless of fuel type, the Isuzu MU-X is the new best-selling large SUV (ahead of the Toyota Prado), the new BYD Atto 3 EV is already in 22nd place , and the Kia Carnival pushed the Mazda 3 outside the top 25.
- Toyota HiLux: 28,093
- Ford Ranger: 26,741
- Tesla Model Y: 14,002
- Isuzu D-Max: 13,243
- MG ZS: 13,579
- Toyota RAV4: 13,523
- Mazda CX-5: 11,607
- Tesla Model 3: 11,575
- Mitsubishi Outlander: 11,342
- Hyundai i30: 11,214
- Hyundai Tucson: 10,749
- Mazda BT-50: 9605
- Mitsubishi Triton: 8725
- MG 3: 8449
- Subaru Forester: 8321
- Mazda CX-3: 8030
- Toyota Corolla: 7206
- Isuzu MU-X: 7114
- Toyota Prado: 7044
- Kia Sportage: 6584
- Toyota Landcruiser Wagon: 6541
- BYD Atto 3: 6196
- Mazda CX-30: 6098
- Subaru interior: 6056
- Kia Carnival: 5745
Leader in key markets
- Light cars: MG 3 (8449), Suzuki Swift (3308), Kia Picanto (3271)
- Small Cars: Hyundai i30 (11,214), Toyota Corolla (7206), Mazda 3 (4842)
- Medium car: Tesla Model 3 (11,575), Toyota Camry (3658), Mercedes-Benz C-Class (1840)
- Sports car: Ford Mustang (1232), Subaru BRZ (838), BMW 2 Series (485)
- Light SUV: Mazda CX-3 (8030), Kia Stonic (3953), Hyundai Venue (3266)
- Small SUV: MG ZS (13,579), Mazda CX-30 (6098), Haval Jolion (5523)
- Medium SUV: Tesla Model Y (14,002), Toyota RAV4 (13,523), Mazda CX-5 (11,607)
- Large SUVs: Isuzu MU-X (7114), Toyota Prado (7004), Subaru Outback (6056)
- Utes 4×4: Ford Ranger (23,620), Toyota HiLux (21,808), Isuzu D-Max (10,787)
Various YTD
Sales by region
- New South Wales: 177,889, up 4.7 percent
- Victoria: 153,714, up 8.3 percent
- Queensland: 127,960, up 11.3 percent
- Western Australia: 60,924, up 14.8 percent
- South Australia: 37,676, up 7.2 percent
- Tasmania: 9,435, down 0.5 percent
- Australian Capital Territory: 9,054, up 11.2 percent
- Northern Territory: 5,107, down 1.7 percent
Category breakdown
- SUV: 55.4 percent share
- Light ads: 22.2 percent share
- Passenger car: 17.9 percent share
- Heavy ads: 4.6 percent share
Top segment by market share
- Medium SUV: 22.4 percent share
- 4×4 Utes: 16.3 percent share
- Small SUV: 13.7 percent share
- Large SUVs: 12.5 percent share
- Small Car: 6.3 percent share
Sales according to the type of buyer
- Private buyers: 303,519, up 4.8 percent
- Business fleet: 204,998, up 13.3 percent
- Rent a fleet: 31,421, up 2.1 percent
- Government fleet: 15,227, up 6.6 percent
Sales by propellant or fuel type
- Gasoline: 294,289, up 6.6 percent
- Diesel: 175,939, down 5.3 percent
- Electricity: 43,092, up 345.2 percent
- Hybrid: 38,313, down 6.7 percent
- PHEV: 3532, up 20.1 percent
- Hydrogen FCEV: 0
Sales by country of origin
- Japan: 154,647, down 10.3 percent
- Thailand: 122,300, down 2.7 percent
- China: 95,852, up 93.1 percent
- Korea: 82,998, up 2.3 percent
- Germany: 26,055, up 28.0 percent
Some previous monthly reports
Have any questions about car sales? Ask in the comments and we’ll jump in!
