Sales of the Toyota Corolla Cross are included in total Corolla sales.
Discover 55 years of Japanese historical data here.
It’s a tough year for the Japanese new car market, down -7.5% to 4,421,494 versus 4,779,086 in 2023. This decline is entirely due to the problems faced by the two automakers at the beginning of the year. Daihatsu has been hit by a safety test rigging scandal that halted deliveries in late December 2023 and halted production completely for the entire month of January. Daihatsu sales fell -62.6% in January, -82% in February, -78.1% in March and -67.8% in April, ending the year down -38.3% or 228,000 units to 8 .3% share versus 12.4% in 2023. Toyota’s share fell by -14.1%, or 222,500 sales, to 30.7% against market share. 33% a year ago, as sales were affected by a scandal involving falsification of test data at a subsidiary diesel engine supplier. In contrast, Suzuki (+10.9%) rose from 13.6% to 16.3% to take 2nd place, ahead of Honda (+12.5%), which rose from 12.4% to 15.1%. Mitsubishi (+15.2%) and Hino (+10.9%) are also impressive.
In the ranking of regular models, Toyota Corolla/Cross (+7.8%) overtakes Toyota Yaris/Cross (-14.5%) and takes first place. For the first time since 2007, the Corolla nameplate takes the top spot at home, although it is now assisted by the Corolla Cross. The Toyota Sienta (-16.1%) suffers but remains in third place, ahead of the Nissan Note (-0.7%), which also remained unchanged in its ranking. The Honda Freed (+10.1%) climbed five places to fourth place, ahead of the weak Toyota Prius (-15.8%). Below excellent ratings are Toyota Alphard (+49.5%) and Honda Vezel (+27.4%). The Honda WR-V is the best-selling new vehicle, ranking 27th, while the Lexus LBX will rise to 32nd starting in December 2023.
Honda N-BOX (-10.9%) remains the most popular kei car and car in general. It is currently ranked number one in the kei car rankings for the last 10 years in a row (without a break since 2015). Suzuki Spacia (+35.5%) moves into second place, displacing the falling Daihatsu Tanto (-41.2%). Mitsubishi Delica Mini/eK (+47.9%), Nissan Dayz (+30.4%), Suzuki Hustler (+12.2%) and Suzuki Wagon R (+10.4%) also shine. The Mini (-3.5%) range is again the most popular foreign “model”, but is falling slightly. The Mercedes GLC (+54%) was the year’s top performer and moved up 11 places to second place, ahead of the struggling VW Golf (-40.4%). The Audi Q3 (+44%) and Mercedes E-Class (No. 9) stand out below.
Previous Year: Japan 2023: Honda N-BOX and Toyota Yaris Back on Top, Toyota Places 8 Models in Top Nine
2 years ago: Japan 2022: best-selling Honda N-BOX and Toyota Yaris on the market with a -5.6% discount.
Full December and 2024. Top 60 All Brands, Top 50 Regular Models, Top 37 All Kei Cars and Top 20 Foreign Models compared to full year 2023 data below.
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