Toyota remained the strongest car manufacturer in Japan during the first six months of 2012. Honda was the second best-selling brand with Volkswagen Japan’s favorite imported car.
During the first half of 2012, the Japanese vehicle market continues to show strong growth and recovery from the difficult 2011 when the tsunami in Japan and flooding elsewhere in Asia severely disrupted car production. Japan’s two largest motor vehicle manufacturers, Toyota and Honda, continue to dominate the market during the first half of 2012. The total Japanese vehicle market for the first six months of 2012 was just shy of 3 million new registrations.
The Japanese Car Market during the First Half of 2012
The Japanese car market continues to show significant growth even if the effects of last year’s tsunami and other natural disasters are taken into account. However, the market was significantly weaker during the second quarter with 1,104,000 new vehicle registrations versus 1,685,000 during the first quarter of 2012.
The Japanese total vehicle market (including cars, trucks, and buses) grew by 54% to 2,95 million units during the first half of 2012. Even taking into account the disruption and aftereffects of events in 2011, this is a very strong performance.
According to JADA statistics, the total Japanese vehicle market for the first six months in previous years:
- 2012 – 2,947,357
- 2011 – 1,191,245
- 2010 – 2,656,828
- 2009 – 2,186,738
- 2008 – 2,786,173
- 2007 – 2,842,519
Best-Selling Japanese Car Manufacturers in 2012 (First Half)
The top-selling motor vehicle manufacturers and brands in Japan during the first six months of 2012, according to car sales statistics released by JADA, were:
| Manufacturer /Car Brand | January to June | % Change | ||
| 2012 | 2011 | |||
| Total | 2,947,357 | 1,919,245 | 53.6 | |
| 1 | Toyota | 893,063 | 482,354 | 85.1 |
| 2 | Honda | 430,948 | 240,187 | 79.4 |
| 3 | Daihatsu | 381,658 | 252,893 | 50.9 |
| 4 | Suzuki | 367,052 | 265,148 | 38.4 |
| 5 | Nissan | 366,619 | 279,619 | 31.1 |
| 6 | Mazda | 119,518 | 88,494 | 35.1 |
| 7 | Subaru | 94,717 | 74,243 | 27.6 |
| 8 | Mitsubishi | 77,915 | 77,902 | 0 |
| 9 | Isuzu | 30,234 | 17,429 | 73.5 |
| 10 | VW | 28,897 | 24,007 | 20.4 |
| 11 | Lexus | 22,863 | 17,745 | 28.8 |
| 12 | Hino | 21,276 | 13,705 | 55.2 |
| 13 | Mercedes-Benz | 19,669 | 15,205 | 29.4 |
| 14 | BMW | 19,284 | 15,418 | 25.1 |
| 15 | Mitsubishi Fuso | 18,264 | 10,507 | 73.8 |
| 16 | Audi | 11,974 | 10,085 | 18.7 |
| 17 | BMW MINI | 8,242 | 6,536 | 26.1 |
| 18 | Volvo | 6,681 | 5,019 | 33.1 |
| Only manufacturers selling over 5,000 units. Source: JADA | ||||
Top-Selling Car Brands in Japan in 2012 (Half Year)
The Japanese vehicle market grew by 54% during the first half of 2012. Rather uniquely, all manufacturers selling more than 5,000 vehicles during the first six months of 2012 in Japan showed growth.
However, with market leaders Toyota (+85%) and Honda (+79%) dominating the market, most other brands actually underperformed the overall market. Mitsubishi performed worst by selling only 13 more cars this year than in the troubled 2011.
Japan’s favorite imported cars remain German. Volkswagen, Europe’s largest car manufacturer, and the strongest selling brand was again the tenth-largest vehicle brand in Japan. However, VW has a market share of less than 1% of the Japanese vehicle market. Mercedes-Benz narrowly outsold BMW in Japan at the beginning of 2012 – a reverse from last year.
Top-Selling Exotic and Luxury Cars in Japan 2012 (Half Year)
Wealthy Japanese consumers continue to enjoy exotic and luxury imported sports cars and limousines. First-half sales figures for 2012 (2011) for a few more expensive brands in Japan include:
- Bentley – 79 (44)
- Bugatti – 2 (0)
- Ferrari – 234 (203)
- Lamborghini – 78 (47)
- Maserati – 148 (125)
- Maybach – 6 (6)
- McLaren – 1 (0)
- Rolls Royce – 40 (47)
