Japan June 2024: Toyota (-14.6%), Honda (+37%) on top

Toyota Land Cruiser sales are up 16.2% year-on-year in June. Sales include the 70, 250 and 300 Series

New vehicle sales in Japan lose a moderate -4.9% year-on-year in June to 373,599 units. However the H1 2024 tally is off -13.2% or over 323,000 sales to 2,127,448. Toyota (-14.6%) endures a significant loss but keep in mind its year-ago result was particularly high at 34.6% share. Honda (+37%) contnues to ignore the declining market and posts a stellar gain to pass Suzuki (+9.4%), also in great shape, to #2 overall for the first time this year. Nissan (-10.7%), Daihatsu (-14.4%) and Mazda (-40.5%) all freefall below. In fact Subaru (+11.3%) is the only additional gainer in the Top 10 just as Mitsubishi (-11.3%) and Lexus (-11.8%) suffer and Isuzu (-1.6%) improves its market share year-on-year. Among foreigners, Volkswagen (+36.7%) and BMW (+12.4%) stand out. Notice also BYD (+60.2%) at #28 with just 149 sales.

Over in the regular car ranking, the Toyota Corolla/Cross (+12%) reclaims the top spot it holds year-to-date above the Toyota Yaris/Cross (-31.2%) in difficult position. The Toyota Sienta (-24.5%) also drops as does the Nissan Note (-3.5%) but to a lesser extent. The Toyota Roomy (+211%) rallies back up to #5 vs. #19 over H1 and the Toyota Alphard (+786.8%) does even better at #7. The Honda Vezel (+89.6%) is also in fantastic shape at #8. Now lifted by the new generation, the Toyota Land Cruiser W (+16.2%) is back up 13 ranks to #12, the nameplate’s highest ranking since July 2023. The recently launched Honda WR-V is down one spot to #20. 

Among kei cars, the Honda N-BOX (+4.8%) is back in its traditional pole position, toppling the Suzuki Spacia (+37.4%) still very dynamic. The Daihatsu Tanto (-18.1%) still suffers from a slow production restart, as do the Daihatsu Mira (-26.4%) and Move (-67.1%). For its part the Daihatsu Taft (+202.4%) has completely recovered. The Suzuki Hustler (+11.1%) and Wagon R (+25.1%) round out the Top 5 in very solid fashion. 

Looking at foreign models, the Mini lineup (-43.9%) keeps the lead despite a devastating year-on-year loss. It distances the Mercedes GLC (+71.9%) soaring to #2 for Q2 and #3 for H1 vs. #13 over the Full Year 2023. The Audi Q3 (+121%), Mercedes GLB (+15.9%) and BMW 3 Series (+15.2%) also shine below, as is also the case for the VW T-Cross (+40.1%), BMW 1 Series (+62.6%), VW T-Roc (+17.4%) and Mercedes GLA (+15.4%). The Jeep Wrangler (-17.1%) returns inside the Top 20 at #15 but drops ground year-on-year.

Previous month: Japan May 2024: Honda (+37.9%), Suzuki (+20.5%) highlight recovering market

One year ago: Japan June 2023: Toyota (+47.6%) tightens its grip to 34.6% of market up 19.8%

Full June 2024 Top 50 All brands, Top 50 regular cars, Top 35 All kei cars and Q2/H1 2024 Top 20 foreign models below.