An EV tops global car sales for the first time

History was made in 2023 when the Tesla Model Y became the first electric vehicle to top the global new car sales list.

Despite some challenges, global new car sales performed well in 2023. A total of 78.32 million new passenger vehicles sold last year across 151 markets, according to JATO Dynamics figures. That’s a 10 per cent increase on 2022. 

Last year’s positive results were not driven solely by China which was up by six per cent when compared with 2022. North America and Japan-Korea both saw an increase of 12 per cent. Europe (+16 per cent) grew the most in 2023 with booming demand in Turkey and Spain. Incentives to buy electric vehicles contributed to the increased sales. 

Over one-fifth of new car sales came from emerging economies, with India at the forefront (4.19m sales). The market share of Chinese car brands soared across many regions including Europe, Australia and New Zealand. By contrast, the US, India, Korea and Japan saw little uptake of Chinese cars. 

For the first time, Chinese brands sold better than their American rivals globally (13.4 million vs 11.9 million). The total for Japanese brands was 23.59 million units.

SUVs posted a new record with 36.72 million sold last year. That amounts to 47 per cent of total global passenger car sales.

Growth was in part due to the success of Tesla in the SUV segment (+60 per cent). And on the back of that, the Tesla Model Y secured top position in the global ranking, the first time a pure electric vehicle has led the global market.

Sales of the Tesla Model Y totaled 1.22 million units globally, up by 64 per cent from 2022. The Model Y outsold traditional global favourites like RAV4 (second) and Corolla (fourth) with CR-V sandwiched in between. Corolla Cross was fifth, Camry sixth, F-150 seventh, Hilux eighth, Sentra ninth, and Tesla Model 3 tenth. In 2022, the three frontrunners were RAV4, Corolla and Model Y. 

The most popular Chinese brand globally in 2023 was BYD, filling 3 of the top 25 positions. Japanese models accounted for just over half of the top sellers, five were American, and there were two Korean and European models each.