New car registrations in 2023 fall short of previous years

It was a challenging year for the automotive industry in 2023, with the number of new cars registered falling short of the previous two years.

Approximately 9.5 per cent fewer new vehicles hit the roads last year compared to 2022 and 9.8 per cent fewer than 2021. Putting that into totals, around 110,488 light passenger, 30,611 light commercial, and 7907 heavy commercial vehicles were registered in 2023.

However, it comes as no surprise that the Ford Ranger was the most registered new car on our roads last year even with Clean Car Discount in full swing. In saying that, Kiwis were also drawn more towards electrified vehicles than ever before, with 2023 seeing a record rise in their uptake.

What were the top three models for 2023?

The most popular vehicle in New Zealand last year was the Ranger with approximately 9893 examples being registered, followed by the Toyota RAV4 (8757 units) and the Toyota Hilux (8052 units).

Who led the market in 2023?

The brand that led the way by a fair margin was Toyota, which claimed a 21.7 per cent market share for the year with 32,359 of its models being registered. This was followed by Ford with a 10.9 per cent share (16,178 units) and Mitsubishi with 9 per cent (13,401 units).

A record rise in electrified vehicle registrations

2023 was an exceptional year for electrified vehicle registrations in New Zealand, with a total of 59,952 being registered. That’s a 45 per cent increase over 2022’s figure.

The most registered new fully electric vehicle in 2023 was the Tesla Model Y (3936 units), followed by the BYD Atto 3 (3171 units), and the MG 4 (1793 units).

As for plug-in hybrids, the Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross reigned supreme with 2777 units registered, while the Mitsubishi Outlander came in second with 1934 units. Rounding out the top three PHEVs was the Kia Sorrento with 718 units.

Topping the charts for hybrids was the Toyota RAV4 (6001 units), eclipsing the Corolla in second place (2246 units), and the Honda Jazz in third (1958 units).

What was the most popular segment in 2023?

The most popular vehicle segment in 2023 was medium-sized SUVs with 40,164 units registered, making up a 36.4 per cent share of the overall market. This was followed by compact SUVs with a 27.7 per cent share and large SUVs with 10.7 per cent.