Toyota tops global ladder
Toyota Motor Corporation sold 10.8 million vehicles in 2024 to remain as the world’s top-selling carmaker for the fifth consecutive year.
It posted a 3.7 per cent decrease in global group sales last year, including those of compact-car maker Daihatsu and truck unit Hino Motors.
The decline was largely due to a steep slump in sales in Japan where the company faced fallout from governance issues over certification test procedures, especially at Daihatsu.
Second-ranked rival, the Volkswagen Group, posted a 2.3 per cent decline in sales during 2024 to just over nine million units as cut costs at home and fought a price war in China.
Sales of Toyota’s parent-only vehicles, which include those of its namesake and Lexus brands, fell 1.4 per cent from a year earlier in 2024 to 10.2m due to a double-digit decline in Japan.
While Toyota sold a record number of cars overall, thanks in part due to demand for its hybrids in the US, it saw sales in China decline by 6.9 per cent amid heavy price competition in the world’s top car market, reports Reuters.
Of its parent-only sales, petrol-electric hybrids made up a record 40.8 per cent while battery electric vehicles (BEVs) accounted for 1.4 per cent.
Lexus gets global boost
Lexus’ global sales in 2024 reached a record high of 851,214 – up by 103.3 per cent on 2023.
It has been attributed to strong demand, particularly in North America and Europe, along with the recovery of stable parts supply contributing.
The LBX and LM were well-received globally, in addition to the strong sales of the core RX and NX. BEVs, such as the RZ and UX 300e, also achieved strong orders with year-on-year growth of 119 per cent, contributing to the brand’s electrified-vehicle ratio reaching a record high of 52 per cent.
The global result comes after Lexus in New Zealand announced its own record-breaking registrations in 2024 to make it one of the country’s highest-selling luxury brands. Its sales grew from 1,022 in 2022 to 1,328 in 2024.
Vice-president Andrew Davis says its expansion here is largely attributed to its expanding electrified range, customer benefits package and Lexus dealers investing in facilities.
He adds the range of electrified models is the broadest it has ever been, starting with the recently introduced LBX, through to popular SUVs and onto high performance coupes.
This expansion continues into 2025 with new NX 450h+ Limited, the first plug-in hybrid in the RX range, and the special-edition RX 500h Black Line.
Davis says: “Luxury customers have high expectations of brands they associate with, so there’s a lot of competition and now choice in the luxury market.
