VFACTS September 2025: Toyota HiLux on top as Tesla makes top three with record EV share

According to VFACTS figures released today by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI), Australians purchased 106,891 new vehicles in September 2025 – up 6.3 per cent on August and 10.1 per cent on September 2024, marking the largest monthly sales increase so far this year and putting the market ahead of last year for the first time in 2025.

It was helped by a record market share for electric vehicles (EV) as the Tesla Model Y achieved third place overall behind the Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger utes. Last month the HiLux snatched back the top spot from the Ranger, which led the contest the previous month, but in year-to-date (YTD) terms the Ranger is still 1237 sales ahead of the HiLux with 42,050 deliveries.

The Model Y’s charge into third place came thanks to 3927 sales, more than double its sales in the same month last year, helping EVs account for a record 11.3 per cent of all new vehicle sales in September, and to notch up an 8.1 per cent share YTD, also marking a new high.

That saw Tesla finish ninth across all brands, with Toyota once again the most popular brand ahead of Ford and Mazda, with Hyundai and BYD leaving September’s list of top-six marques unchanged from August.

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Chery dropped out of the top 10 to 12th, despite selling more cars month-on-month, after four Chinese brands made the top 10 in August – the first time that had happened.

The biggest growth still came from Chinese brands, with Chery posting a huge 172.2 per cent year-on-year gain, which was outstripped only by BYD’s 178.4 per cent increase as it firmly entrenches itself in the top six, having placed as high as fifth in June 2025.

Plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHEV) sales also grew by 81.1 per cent compared to the same month last year, while plugless hybrid (HEV) sales increased by 9.1 per cent, led by the Toyota RAV4, which was pipped for fourth by the Ford Everest by just four sales (2558).

YTD, EV sales are down 15.2 per cent, petrol vehicle sales are down 7.9 per cent, and diesel vehicle sales are down 1.3 per cent, but HEV sales are up 10.6 per cent and PHEV sales are up 143.7 per cent.

Brands

Perennial chart-topper Toyota remains well in front of every other brand, with its 18,318 sales for the month more than double those of second-placed Ford and a 1.1 per cent improvement on September 2024.

Toyota Australia has said it expects to fall short of the record 240,916 vehicles it sold last year, suggesting it will end up at around 220,000 sales, but it’s only one per cent or a mere 1797 sales down YTD.

Second-placed Ford nearly matched its September 2024 performance with 8003 sales (just three fewer than in September 2024), but its YTD sales of 70,881 are further from its 74,564 figure at the same point last year. The trend continues with Kia’s 7330 sales being 320 short of its September 2024 result, although it remains one of few brands up YTD, with 62,884 deliveries being 411 more than at this time last year.

BYD seems to have entrenched itself into the top six, having ranked fifth in June, seventh in July and now sixth for the second consecutive month in a row. It’s the Sealion 7 mid-size electric SUV, a Model Y rival, that’s leading the charge with 1887 sales, putting it well ahead of the Shark 6 PHEV dual-cab ute.

The Model Y remains Australia’s top-selling EV, with its September boom helping Tesla to finish ninth, pushing MG to 10th ahead of Subaru and Chery.

Models

The tug-o-war between the HiLux and Ranger continues, with the HiLux returning to the top of tree in September courtesy of its significantly higher 4×4 sales (875 versus 235) after Ranger was top-dog in August.

The HiLux may have won the September battle, but it remains behind in the YTD war by 1237 units, with the Ranger leading on 42,050, putting the Ford – with only three months remaining – on track to become Australia’s best-selling vehicle for the third year in a row. It’s not done yet, though, especially with booms from models such as the updated Model Y, which fell only 260 sales short of Ranger 4×4 sales in September. The Ranger-based Everest won another close battle with the Toyota RAV4, which was Australia’s best-selling SUV and Toyota’s most popular model in 2024, and has topped the monthly sales charts multiple times in 2025. But Ford will be pleased nonetheless with the performance of its locally-developed off-road SUV.

The Mazda CX-5, once Australia’s favourite mid-size SUV, continued to fall in popularity with sales down 4.1 per cent to 1725 in September on the back of a torrid August. A new generation is due in 2026, although it will face a new RAV4 from Toyota.

The biggest mover was the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro small SUV, which is in a battle with the Mahindra XUV 3XO for the title of Australia’s cheapest SUV. The Tiggo 4 Pro posted its best result so far to finish sixth overall in September, jumping from outside the top 10 last month (11th) to become the brand’s best performer and overtake last month’s most popular small SUV, the Hyundai Kona.

Segments

• Micro cars: Kia Picanto (620), Fiat/Abarth 500 (38)
• Light cars under $30,000: MG 3 (615), Mazda 2 (324), Toyota Yaris (219)
• Light cars over $30,000: Mini Cooper (201), Hyundai i20 (96), Volkswagen Polo (94)
• Small cars under $45,000: Toyota Corolla (1137), Hyundai i30 (1021), Kia K4 (938)
• Small cars over $45,000: Volkswagen Golf (249), Audi A3 (215), Subaru WRX (195)
• Medium cars under $60,000: Toyota Camry (896), BYD Seal (450), Skoda Octavia (70)
• Medium cars over $60,000: Tesla Model 3 (736), BMW 3 Series (218), Lexus ES (93)
• Large cars under $70,000: Skoda Superb (22)
• Large cars over $70,000: Mercedes-Benz E-Class (39), BMW 5 Series (24), BMW i5 (24)
• Upper large cars: BMW i7 (7), BMW 7 Series (3), Bentley Flying Spur(2)/Lexus LS (2)
• People movers under $70,000: Kia Carnival (703), Hyundai Staria (107), Ford Tourneo (92)
• People movers over $70,000: Volkswagen ID. Buzz (46), Volkswagen Multivan (34), Mercedes-Benz V-Class (19)
• Sports cars under $90,000: Ford Mustang (117), Subaru BRZ (73), Mazda MX-5 (61)
• Sports cars over $90,000: BMW 2 Series Coupe (153), Mercedes-Benz CLE (77), BMW 4 Series two-door range (53)
• Sports cars over $200,000: Porsche 911 (59), Mercedes-AMG GT (16)/Lamborghini two-door range (16)

• Light SUVs: Mazda CX-3 (1188), Kia Stonic (754), Hyundai Venue (750)
• Small SUVs under $45,000: Chery Tiggo 4 (2048), GWM Haval Jolion (1881, Hyundai Kona (1884)
• Small SUVs over $45,000: Audi Q3 (506), BMW X1 (440), Volkswagen T-Roc (367)
• Medium SUVs under $60,000: Toyota RAV4 (2554), BYD Sealion 7 (1887), Mitsubishi Outlander (1785)
• Medium SUVs over $60,000: Tesla Model Y (3927), Mazda CX-60 (451), BMW X3 (440),
• Large SUVs under $80,000: Ford Everest (2558), Toyota Prado (1885), Subaru Outback (742)
• Large SUVs over $80,000: Land Rover Defender (341), BMW X5 (273), Range Rover Sport (264)
• Upper large SUVs under $120,000: Toyota LandCruiser (1166), Nissan Patrol (468), Land Rover Discovery (41)
• Upper large SUVs over $120,000: BMW X7 (93), Lexus GX (74)/Mercedes-Benz G-Class(74)

• Volkswagen Caddy (93), Peugeot Partner (45), Renault Kangoo (9)
• Medium vans: Toyota HiAce (1096), Ford Transit Custom (381), Hyundai Staria Load (265)
• 4×2 utes: Toyota HiLux (875), Isuzu D-Max (279), Mitsubishi Triton (277)
• 4×4 utes: Ford Ranger (4632), Toyota HiLux (4172), Isuzu D-Max (1710)
• Large pickups: Ram 1500 (235), Chevrolet Silverado HD (189), Chevrolet Silverado (156)

Sales by category

Includes Tesla and Polestar sales.

Top segments by market share

Sales by region

Excludes Tesla and Polestar sales.

Sales by buyer type

Excludes Tesla, Polestar and heavy commercial sales.

Sales by fuel or propulsion type

Excludes heavy commercial sales.

Sales by country of origin

Excludes Tesla and Polestar sales.