Australia June 2023: Tesla breaks volume record, Model Y #2, Mazda BT-50 at highest ever

The Mazda BT-50 hits a record 7th place in Australia in June.

10/07 update: Now with Top 299 All models.

New vehicle sales in Australia shoot up 25% year-on-year in June to 124,926 units, the highest June volume since 2018 (130,300). This means the H1 2023 tally is up 8.2% over the same period in 2022 to 581,809. This great performance could have been even better were it not for continued supply bottlenecks. Private sales trail the market at +22.5% to 62,351 while business fleets soar 33.3% to 46,038. Rental sales (+3% to 6,977) and government (+12.6% to 2,923) are a lot more discreet. SUV sales climb 31.5% to 69,059 and 55.3% share vs. 52.5% last year and 48.6% in June 2021. Light commercials lift 20.9% to 28,833 and 23.1% share vs. 23.9% a year ago and 25.8% in June 2021 while passenger cars post a rare gain at +10.6% to 20,397 but see their share continue to slide at 16.3% vs. 18.5% a year ago and 21.1% in June 2021. Heavy commercials hold 5.3% of the market for the month.

Petrol sales are up 16.8% to 59,995, diesel is up 6.2% to 37,497, BEVs shoot up 871.2% to a record 11,042, HEVs are up 40.6% to 9,020 and PHEVs up 28.9% to 735. Looking at sales by region, all states and territories are up by double-digits bar Northern Territory down -2.7% to 1,085. New South Wales is up 15.6% to 37,020, Victoria is up 31.8% to 33,966, Queensland up 27.6% to 28,029, Western Australia up 33.2% to 13,073, South Australia up 28.3% to 7,974, Tasmania up 22.3% to 1,923 and Australian Capital Territory up 24.9% to 1,856. As for sales by origin, Japan is up 16.2% to 30,112, Thailand up 10.4% to 25,063, China up 158.2% to 23,233, South Korea down -1.4% to 17,227 and Germany up 17.1% to 6,226.

The Tesla Model Y is up to 2nd place in June.

Toyota (-7.1%) continues to lead the brands charts despite another paltry performance due to supply problems. On the other hand Mazda (+55.4%) makes up for a particularly weak year-ago result (-48.9%) as its market share for the month (7.8%) remains below its YTD level of 8.7%. Hyundai (-0.5%) stays in third place ahead of a surging Ford (+55.9%) and a disappointing Kia (-11%). Tesla (+3980.2%!) breaks its ranking record at #6 (previous best #7 hit in August 2022, September 2022 and April 2023. It also manages a volume record at 7,018 (previous best 5,969 in September 2022) but can’t do the same market share wise at 5.6% vs. 6.4% in September 2022. Below, Volkswagen (+71.2%), GWM (+59.7% to a new record volume), Subaru (+37.6%) and MG (+36.6%) stand out, as do LDV (+167.2% to new share and volume records), Ssangyong (+143.8%) and Lexus (+141.7%) further down. Ram (+85.2%) smashes its volume record at 1,172 vs. a previous best of 766 hit just last month and is up to a record 0.9% share. 

Model-wise, the Toyota Hilux (-19%) stays on top with 4.9% share, slightly above its YTD level of 4.8%. The Tesla Model Y is up one spot to #2, the highest ever ranking for an electric vehicle in Australia. As a result it shoots up from #10 over the first five months of 2023 to #3 over H1. The Ford Ranger (+90.4%) is relegated to #3 despite a new generation-related surge. The MG ZS (+167.9%) advances to a fantastic 4th place, its highest since last December (#3) but more importantly it edges past the Toyota RAV4 (+10.5%) in the YTD charts. The Hyundai Tucson (-6.1%) recedes on a record year-ago performance. There are five pickup trucks (or “utes” as Australians call them) as businesses rushed to purchase them before the end of a tax write off benefit. Notably the Mazda BT-50 (+112.4%) is up to a new record 7th place (previous best #10 in September 2021), also breaking its volume and share records. The Hyundai i30 (+40.1%) is the only passenger car in the Top 10 at #8 with the Isuzu D-Max (+4.9%) and Mitsubishi Triton (+12.2%) rounding out the Top 10.

Previous month: Australia May 2023: Record market, Toyota Hilux reclaims control

One year ago: Australia June 2022: Kia breaks records again, Toyota Hilux and Hyundai Tucson at highest ever

Full June 2023 Top 50 All brands and Top 299 All models below.