2017 (Q3) Japan: Best-Selling Car Brands and Models

During the first three quarters of 2017, Toyota was Japan’s best-selling carmaker, the Prius the top-selling model and the Honda N-Box the favorite mini car.

Honda and Suzuki at Geneva 2017

January to September 2017: Toyota easily maintained its traditional position as Japan’s largest vehicle manufacturer followed by Honda and Suzuki. Japanese new vehicle registrations increased by 7.5% to just over 4 million vehicles sold during the first three quarters of 2017. The Toyota Prius was again the best-selling car model in Japan despite a sharp drop in sales. The most popular mini car thus far in 2017 in Japan was the Honda N-Box.

The Japanese New Vehicle Market in 2017 (Q1-3)

New vehicle registrations in Japan increased by 7.5% thus far in 2017 to 4,060,584 vehicles. This number included cars, mini cars, buses and trucks.

The first three quarters of 2017 saw vehicle sales in Japan above the 4 million mark for the first time in three years. Sales were 3,776,386 vehicles during the first nine months of 2016, compared to 3,908,897 in 2015 and a very strong 4,318,311 in 2014.

Best-Selling Vehicle Manufacturers in Japan in 2017 Q1-Q3)

The top-selling vehicle manufacturers (including cars, buses and trucks) in Japan during the first nine months of 2017 according to JADA were:

Q1-3/2017 Q1-3/2016 % Change 2017
4,060,584 3,776,384 7.5
1 Toyota 1,217,950 1,157,914 5.2
2 Honda 552,181 536,995 2.8
3 Suzuki 518,344 480, 908 7.8
4 Nissan 496,295 401, 157 23.7
5 Daihatsu 480,788 443, 303 8.5
6 Mazda 166,479 161, 408 3.1
7 Subaru 139,502 117, 130 19.1
8 Mitsubishi 72,280 64, 306 12.4
9 Isuzu 64,112 61, 343 4.5
10 Hino 52,039 47,595 9.3
11 Mercedes-Benz 51,083 50, 402 1.4
12 BMW 38,832 37, 633 3.2
13 Volkswagen 37,205 36, 760 1.2
14 Mitsubishi Fuso 33,120 34, 246 -3.3
15 Lexus 30,957 40, 467 -23.5
16 Audi 20,916 21, 529 -2.8
17 BMW Mini 18,584 17,790 4.5
18 Volvo 11,999 10,825 10.8
19 UD Trucks 7,736 7,776 -0.5
20 Jeep 7,494 7,098 5.6

Top Carmakers in Japan in 2017 (January to September)

The Japanese new car market expanded for the 11th consecutive month in September 2017 with all of the top ten largest manufacturers increasing sales thus far in 2017.

Toyota and Honda remained the two largest carmakers in Japan during the first three quarters of 2017 but both lost market share with sales increases below market average.

Suzuki just outperformed the market to maintain third place. Nissan increased sales by nearly a quarter to regained fourth place from Daihatsu that also had stronger sales.

Mazda sales were relatively flat while Subaru increased sales by nearly a fifth and Mitsubishi sales increased by 12%. Isuzu sales were up by 4.5%.

Truck maker Hino increased sales by 9% to push Mercedes-Benz out of the top-ten list. Mercedes-Benz slipped to 11th with relatively flat sales but sufficient to easily remained the largest foreign car brand in Japan. BMW and VW had similarly unremarkable increases in sales in Japan thus far in 2017.

Lexus was the worst performing car brand in Japan thus far in 2017 with sales down by nearly a quarter. Lexus slipped from 12th place last year to 15th behind VW and BMW.

Volvo was the only larger foreign car brand in Japan to outperform the broader market thus far in 2017.

Best-Selling Car Models in Japan in 2017 (Q2+Q3)

The ten best-selling car models in Japan during the six months April to September 2017 according to JADA were:

Rank Manufacturer Model Q2+3/2017 % Change
1 Toyota Prius 78,707 -40.4
2 Nissan Note 68,441 68.5
3 Toyota Aqua 62,537 -23.6
4 Toyota C-HR 60,627 New
5 Honda Freed 51,652 305.2
6 Honda Fit 48,488 -7.9
7 Toyota Vitz 44,005 19.6
8 Toyota Sienta 42,837 -31.8
9 Toyota Voxy 39,988 -6.6
10 Nissan Serena 37,503 34.6

The JADA-listing exclude Kei cars.

Top-Selling Car Models in Japan in 2017 (Q2+Q3)

During the six-month period April to September 2017, the Toyota Prius remained the best-selling car model in Japan. However, sales of Japan’s favorite car were down by 40% following very strong sales during the corresponding period in 2016.

The Nissan Note moved up from 8th a year ago to second most-popular car model in Japan with sales up by more than two thirds from a year ago.

The Toyota Aqua slipped from second a year ago to third with sales down by nearly a quarter. The Toyota C-HR, a new model, entered the list at fourth.

The new Honda Freed model saw sales triple and a new entrant on the top-ten list at fifth. The aging Honda Fit slipped from fourth with sales down by 8%.

The Toyota Vitz increased sales by a fifth with an improvement in rank position from tenth a year ago. In contrast, Toyota Sienta sales were down by a third and the model slipped from third a year ago to 8th. The Toyota Voxy slipped from fifth to ninth.

The Nissan Serena re-entered the top-ten list with sales up by more than a third. The evergreen Toyota Corolla slipped to 13th.

Top-Selling Mini Kei Cars in Japan in 2017 (Q1-Q3)

The top ten best-selling mini cars (kei-jidousya) in Japan during the first three quarters of 2017 according to Zenkeijikyo were:

Maker Common name This month Q1-3/2017 Q1-3/2016 % Change
1 Honda N-BOX 157,795 142,696 10.6
2 Nissan Dayz 113,641 77,098 47.4
3 Daihatsu Tanto 112,696 124,861 -9.7
4 Daihatsu Move 105,037 65,006 61.6
5 Suzuki Wagon R 88,385 64,103 37.9
6 Suzuki Spacia 82,208 63,132 30.2
7 Daihatsu Mira 74,054 56,991 29.9
8 Suzuki Alto 71,128 78,345 -9.2
9 Honda N-WGN 60,666 67,328 -9.9
10 Suzuki Hustler 58,546 66,726 -12.3

Honda N-BOX G・EX Honda SENSING (DBA-JF3)Mini cars (kei-jidousya) in Japan are vehicles defined by amongst others being shorter than 3.4 m with a maximum height of 2 m and a maximum width of 1.48 m. The engine capacity is restricted to 0.66 l measured by the Japanese standard.

 

About the author:

Henk Bekker

Henk Bekker is a freelance writer with over 20 years of experience in online writing. His best-selling cars website has been reporting car sales statistics since 2008 with classic car auction prices focusing on the most expensive automobiles sold at public auctions in the past decade. He also owns the travel websites European-Traveler.com and Lake Geneva Switzerland. Henk holds an MBA from Edinburgh Business School and an MSc in Finance from the University of London.