Toyota HiLux was the top-selling vehicle in 2021

Australian car-buying habits have changed dramatically over the past decade and one model in particular has continued to dominate our driveways.

Australia’s obsession with utes continued in 2021 as the Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger filled the top two spots on the sales charts, according to released by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.

Australians bought 1,049,831 vehicles last year, a 14.5 per cent increase on 2020.

FCAI chief executive Tony Weber said the result was a solid one, given the long shutdowns in Sydney and Melbourne and supply issues resulting from the global shortage of microprocessors.

But the overall result masks a difficult last quarter for the industry.

Sales were down 14 per cent in the last three months of the year – and 18 per cent in December – as stock shortages dented sales.

The HiLux has been the country’s top-selling vehicle for six years in a row now, attracting 52,801 buyers. In Queensland, it’s been number one for 15 years. Ford’s Ranger, which was designed in Australia, has been runner-up for the past five years. It logged 50,279 sales.

Utes made up four of the top 10 selling vehicles last year, while SUVs dominated the minor placings.

The Toyota HiLux was the top-selling vehicle in the country for the sixth straight year. Picture: Thomas Wielecki.

Sales of traditional hatchbacks, sedans and wagons continued to slide as Aussie motorists embraced the dream of outback adventure machines.

Here are the winners and losers of 2021.

Utes are taking over the streets as people search for adventure. Picture: Thomas Wielecki.

WINNERS

Utes

With international borders closed, more people are exploring the outback or putting a boat on the water and utes are the ideal companion. Once strictly seen as tradie transport, the ute has become the ultimate “work and play” vehicle, displacing the traditional family sedan. Aside from the HiLux and Ranger, Mitsubishi’s Triton and Isuzu’s D-Max both made the top ten vehicles.

Despite stock shortages of its most popular models, Toyota continues to dominate the car market. Picture: Thomas Wielecki.

Toyota

The Japanese brand’s domination of the local market seems unlikely to end any time soon. The brand was hampered by stock shortages towards the end of the year that saw delivery delays for some popular models stretch out for months but it still accounted for one in five new-car sales, more than doubling the sales of its nearest competitor, Mazda. Aside from the HiLux, Toyota had four of the top five sellers; the RAV4 ranked third, the Corolla fourth and the LandCruiser fifth. Hybrid sales were a big part of the brand’s success, making up almost a third (65,491) of its total sales.

Electric vehicle sales are growing, off a low base. By Thomas Wielecki

EVs

Electric vehicle sales almost tripled last year as most of the big brands debuted new models. That sounds impressive, but the growth was off a minuscule base. Officially, they still only make up roughly 0.5 per cent of the total market. However, the official sales figures don’t include the most popular EV brand, Tesla, which refuses to publish sales figures. Estimates suggest the brand sold more than 10,000 vehicles last year, putting it ahead of established brands such as Lexus and Volvo. Tesla sold more EVs than the rest of the industry combined last year.

Chinese brand MG has made huge inroads into the Australian market. Picture: Supplied.

Chinese cars

Diplomatic tensions have done nothing to dampen enthusiasm for Chinese cars. Sales more than doubled as buyers flocked to brands such as MG, Haval, Great Wall and LDV. MG burst into the top ten selling brands in the country thanks to keenly priced, well equipped small cars and SUVs. Sales were up 156 per cent and the brand outsold Subaru.

Honda has had a spectacular fall from grace with buyers. Picture: Supplied.

LOSERS

Honda

The Japanese brand has been in free fall for a number of years, but last year marked an all-time low. In a market that was up almost 15 per cent, Honda sales slipped by close to 40 per cent. Halfway through the year, the brand cut the dealers out of the sales process and introduced a “no-haggle” pricing policy. No-one’s buying. The only other major brand to experience a dip in sales was Mercedes-Benz, which coincidentally is following Honda’s move towards dealing direct with customers.

Traditional cars such as the Corolla have become less popular. Picture: Supplied.

Traditional cars

There’s been a revolution in car buying habits in the past ten years. A decade ago, passenger cars outsold SUVs by more than two to one and utes by more than three to one. Last year, the roles were reversed. SUVs dominated sales and for the first time in history more Aussies bought utes than sedans and hatchbacks combined.

Australians are buying fewer German cars. Picture: Supplied.

German cars

In 2020, Australians bought twice as many cars German cars than Chinese ones. Last year, sales of German cars dropped by more than a quarter. While all the German brands recorded sales increases last year, the decline reflects the fact that they are choosing to build more cars offshore.

No-one bought a Holden last year, but they still won Bathurst. Picture: Brendon Thorne/Getty Images.

Holden

Last year was the first time in decades no-one bought a new Holden. The brand sold 203 vehicles in 2020 but none last year. Rusted on Holden fans can console themselves with the fact that prices for used V8 Commodores have skyrocketed as people rush to secure their slice of Australian automotive history. And they still won Bathurst.

TOP TEN BRANDS

1 Toyota 223,642

2 Mazda 101,119

3 Hyundai 72,872

4 Ford 71,380

5 Kia 67,964

6 Mitsubishi 67,732

7 Nissan 41,263

8 Volkswagen 40,770

9 MG 39,025

10 Subaru 37,015

TOP TEN SELLERS

1 Toyota HiLux 52,801

2 Ford Ranger 50,279

3 Toyota RAV4 35,751

4 Toyota Corolla 28,768

5 Toyota LandCruiser 26,633

6 Hyundai i30 25,575

7 Isuzu D-Max 25,117

8 Mazda CX-5 24,968

9 Toyota Prado 21,229

10 Mitsubishi Triton 19,232

Originally published as Toyota HiLux was the top-selling vehicle in 2021