Toyota: 4th world title for the Japanese manufacturer

The year 2023 was synonymous with victory for Toyota. With sales approaching 11.2 million units, the Japanese manufacturer not only broke its previous record, but also retained its title as the world automotive leader.

Hybrids drive Toyota’s sales worldwide

Toyota’s strategy in 2023 is clearly focused on hybrid vehicles. The group sold over 3.4 million during the year, an impressive increase of 31.4% over the previous year. Hybrids, in fact, have saved the day for the Japanese manufacturer while the latter has suffered significant delays in the 100% electric vehicle segment, where the brand registered sales of just 104,018 units. Result: In 2023, Toyota retained its dominance in the global market, overtaking its German and South Korean rivals. Even without counting the contributions of its subsidiaries Daihatsu and Hino, Toyota and Lexus sold more vehicles than Volkswagen (9.24 million) and Hyundai-Kia (7.3 million).

The German group and the South Korean group find themselves far behind, failing to cross the symbolic bar of sales of 10 million units, in second and third place respectively.

Toyota scandals have not affected sales

If 2023 ends with a new record for Toyota, the brand has been rocked by scandals involving harsh performance tests at Daihatsu and Hino. Consumers approved the group which led to a decline in Hino’s sales (-9.8%)., when the parent company announced the suspension of production at Daihatsu. Additionally, Toyota faced irregularities in the approval of diesel engines, which led to the suspension of shipments of certain models. These issues don’t seem to hit the Japanese manufacturer hard in 2023. It remains to be seen whether Toyota will be able to catch on with electric cars

All manufacturers are turning to anticipating a ban on the sale of new thermal cars in 2035, especially in Europe.