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-   -   Interesting observations from 2021 auto sales across the world (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/international-automotive-scene/248183-interesting-observations-2021-auto-sales-across-world.html)

I was browsing for my daily dose of automotive news and came across this Autocar UK article from last week.

There are some observations and tl;dr that I thought you guys might find interesting. I have listed a few but I am sure there are many conclusions to be drawn from the data.

1. Among major car buying countries India showed a stupendous 26.8% growth. Next best is Canada at 7.7%.
2. Toyota managed to sell an unbelievable, almost 1 million units of each : Corolla and RAV4. That makes Toyota the number one seller in the world, unsurprisingly. These two fit the definition of cash cow perfectly. And Toyota doesn't seem to stop finding ways to milk those names. There is now Corolla Cross in the market, a C-SUV based on Corolla. Corolla incidentally is the # 1 seller in the world narrowly beating RAV4.
3. RAV4 is propelling itself to new heights every year. It is world's best-selling SUV, outselling Honda CR-V comfortably.
4. Honda CR-V is global # 3. Honda Accord is not in the top 10 but Camry is, at number 4. Only other Honda is the Civic at # 6.
5. 7 of the top 10 are Japanese cars. No European car in the list. Wuling HG Mini is the 10th highest selling car in the world.
6. Despite slump in sales, VW managed to be global # 2. Narrowly outselling Honda. They aren't big sellers in the USA . Toyota USA outsells VW USA 5 to 1. Globally too, the difference between #1 and # 2 is eye opening. Toyota sold 2.78 million more cars than VW. Rest of the line up is close to each other. Dethroning Toyota isn't going to be easy unless they butcher their EV though process in the next decade.
7. Hyundai is proving itself year on year. Last year it became world # 4 seller ahead of Ford and Nissan. Incredible feat in my opinion. Kia, India's newest darling isn't far behind either. They occupy 7th slot in the top 10 list.
8. With SUVs being all the craze across the globe, 6 of the top 10 cars are still sedans or share their name with SUVs/Hatchbacks based on them. E.g. Corolla has Corolla Cross and hatch. Civic has Civic hatches.
9. Jeep sold 1.22 million SUVs. Solid number for SUV specialist whose cars aren't exactly brimming with tech like Japanese or Germans. But it has a strong base across the world that keeps on buying them. The pedigree is strong. However the cutesy little Renegade isn't even in top 5 for the parent group Stellantis. As a brand though, Jeep is the biggest for Stellantis.
10. Ford F150 keeps bringing incredible sales thanks to North America. It is worlds 7th largest selling vehicle ahead of Toyota Yaris and is the only truck in the top 10.
11. Ford Mustang is world's top selling sports car, followed by (rather surprisingly) BMW 4 series. The top 10 list has a few other affordable fun cars in it, like Mazda Miata and Chevy Camaro. Hopefully king of fun per penny ratio cars like BRZ and GR86 will make an appearance next year.
12. Corvette and even more astonishingly Porsche 911 outsold Camaro and Miata. Both of these cars are touted as easy to live with and can be used as every day cars despite offering super car like performance. These numbers seem to confirm that belief.
13. Out of top 10 sports cars, only 1 is Japanese - the Miata. Rest of the list is filled with American and German cars. I remember days of JDM sports cars. Toyota is paying attention to their GR division now but I don't think we will have heydays of ICE Japanese sports cars back.
14. BMW outsold MB to take lead in premium brands. It sold approximately 4 times as what Lexus sold. Clearly, outstanding reliability, maintenance, resale do not hold much importance once you move up the ladder.
15. Hyundai is tasting success with Genesis too. Within first year of global launch, the brand is neck to neck with Porsche.
16. China is world's top market for premium cars, easily outselling USA.
17. Tesla, a newbie compared to everyone in top list managed to sell so many Model 3s that it is the 5th most sold car in the world. Model 3 isn't cheap and yet beat every other (and cheaper) alternative.
18. Apart from Model 3 at the top of Evs, Tesla also has model Y at 4th position globally. VW and Renault have their players in the list too, while majority is filled up by Chinese vehicles.
19. Bucking the trend, Tesla Model X which is a massive SUV, is the least selling model in the line up. Outsold by Model S sedan by a vast margin.
20. Most of Tesla's growth came from China. The country seems smitten by Tesla.
    

India is the top market for Suzuki cars infact Suzuki is surviving because of India! About 50% of Suzuki's global sales come from India.

Definitely. On average they sell 2.6m vehicles per year globally. Out of that 1.36m has come from India in 2021.

What an informative thread. Thank you for sharing!
Wonder when Toyota is going to give us RAV4. I like that SUV.

If not RAV4, the new Corolla Cross seems ripe for our shores which undercuts RAV4. Out of top 10 selling cars across the globe, we just have one..that too a sedan that comes as CBU - The Camry. All other top sellers that came to India died a slow painful death for multiple reasons. With that in mind, if RAV4 comes to India its global reputation won't matter much. See where CR-V ended up. Everything will boil down how Toyota plays it here. Not many hopes though :)

I completely agree with you. Toyota goofed up with Yaris on price point and see where it ended. And now considering Toyota and MSIL badge re-engineering, no hopes left rl:

Those stats for Toyota don't come as a surprise. If there was one company that was prepared for what the pandemic would swing at the automotive world, it was them. They've had some setbacks now, due to semiconductor shortages, just like everyone else, however, have pulled through most of it and analysts are confident that 2022 won't be any different. Link

I assume Corolla figures include the Cross. I've never seen one so don't know what it even looks like. The RAV4 reigning supreme comes as no surprise. They've gone all out with the current generation and this is a high quality vehicle. The inclusion of Hybrid and latest Plug In Hybrid has made it an even sweeter deal. 40 miles in 100% EV mode works for most folks and for those who still aren't convinced to go 100% EV. Strikes a nice balance as it can be used as a daily school run or work vehicle and cost next to nothing to run and when you do want to do a long road trip, its still economical. There is no vehicle in the market out there that offers such flexibility.

Camp Toyota do need to watch out though. Kia/Hyundai are on a sharp and fast rise, in the UK and more so the USA market. Unless they expand their EV portfolio, they will be blown to smithereens. The Lexus UX300e is on sale now in some markets and that's targeting a clientele higher than the average Toyota bloke. Still, compared to what Hyundai/Kia offer in the EV space, Toyota are nowhere. Having seen a few Ioniq 5's on the road, it is WOW. Hyundai/Kia are also giving the conservative Japanese market another go with their all EV portfolio. Its a market they've struggled to break into.

I am not sure what Honda are up to. They launched a new Civic at a time there needs to be a new CR-V. I mean, the Civic is nice but the market has moved on from sedans. Its sad to see them in this position.

I am surprised there isn't a mention of Mazda. Their new line up of SUV's and the new all electric CX30 are top of the class and are doing well. Much better appointed than any Toyota vehicle too. I would not bother with a Highlander when you have a slick CX9.

Genesis are indeed on a rise. Oddly, they are struggling in a market much closer to home, that is China and there are no immediate plans to electrify the range either. Not offering an EV in the worlds largest EV market is stupidity.

As you've said, Tesla have smashed through all sales forecasts. The Model 3 has had some months where it outsold every other model of vehicle sold in the market. I know UK and New Zealand were one of them.

Camry is a CKD, assembled in India. Currently the Camry plant is undergoing changes to start manufacturing of the D22, a Creta-rival jointly being developed by Toyota and Maruti Suzuki.

Toyota India knows the price at which they’ll launch the RAV4 or Corolla Cross both on expensive TNGA platforms, they are just not going to sell. Hence they are developing new cars specifically for the Indian market with Maruti Suzuki.

Cross looks quite ordinary - like any other CSUV for which you won't skip a beat. Exactly what people want and need from brand Corolla. Its a nice strategy. It undercuts regular RAV4 by about 5k. I guess it now is cannibalizing C-HR which has always been an oddball misstep car in the whole line up.
The RAV4 also covers a wide spectrum though the numbers don't differentiate between sub-models. Starting from 26k it goes all the way up to 43k for plug-in hybrid in the USA where it sells like hot cakes. There is a RAV4 for lot of budget segments.



Mazda as well as Subaru. Both have always been comparatively niche Japanese brands selling their cars in pockets than across the country. You are right, new gen Mazdas are simply fabulous in every manner. However if you look at the way their current direction, they are concentrating on budget luxury theme. The interior design, surface texture, materials used everything screams upmarket. Mazda 3 is a prime example of this. Absolutely fantastic. Interior makes you feel like million dollars. Theme continues in higher models too. Personally, Mazda 3 Turbo AWD hatch is on my list of possible purchase at # 1.

Of late Subaru too is on a roll and have been solidifying their image as kings of snowy and rainy tarmac. The Wilderness editions are giving a run to proper 4x4 like Wranglers and Bronco in treacherous terrains while being much more easy to live with in urban areas. They have also shaken off their infamous engine issues and terrible CVT they are so fond of putting in every car. They still put CVTs (in WRX too!) but have minimized the rubber band effect to almost zero. I will have to TD the latest Outback to be sure.

I wish both of them luck. Two of my favorite brands with USPs that no other brands offer.

Just a hunch. Since the 4 series is such a hit, I think that massive grille is here to stay for foreseeable future whether we like it or not and possibly get implemented to more main stream bread and butter models like Non-M 3 series. Hope I am wrong.

I really don't understand the fascination around Corolla, I have driven it and found it like a machine just trying to do chores. But almost 50% cabs I see in Berlin are either Corolla or Corolla Touring so that gives a good push in sales.
Cross looks good and I am certain it will find buyers atleast in North America.

Regarding BMWs, newer cars are fairly reliable and good daily drivers. My friend's 3 series has been as economic as my Mazda to maintain.

As a Mazda owner, it saddens me a lot but Mazda isn't trying to push a lot like Toyota when it comes to sales. They like to called a niche player and cater to a small but loyal customer base. My buying experince in Germany was really drab and nothing like how people push in India. Even BMW has called me more than Mazda here rl:

Just a small correction - CX-30 is a cross version of Mazda 3 hatchback and MX-30 is the all electric car they have. Both very good cars :thumbs up

Are we ever going to see any of these cars (except for the Toyota Camry) being sold in India ? Sad - to say the least.

Could it be because you are in Germany? Where I lived in the USA European cars/bikes were definitely much expensive to maintain. What I have noticed from servicing Triumph and BMW is that the labor charges are through the roof compared to Japanese makes. Same for independent mechanics who work on European vehicles.
RAV4 has discussion happening around it for quite some time. We even have a thread on that topic. But I doubt it will sell charts on fire like it does globally.
Apart from that personally I think Corolla could make a come back and CR-V if Honda survives. Yaris would have been great too but it was butchered in India and its definitely dead. They are even planning a Ciaz rebadge to replace it.
Then there is the imminent Tesla launch that will bring Model 3/Y/S to our shores.

2 million units of Corolla’s and RAV4’s sold in a year and Toyota doesn’t care to bring their best products to India.

When Merc / BMW / Audi have their entire line up what’s up for Toyota?

Do they think we Indians do not have the purchasing power or still thinks these products doesn’t deserve to be in our soil?

Only Toyota can answer this I guess

Very happy to see Tesla Model 3 in top 5 most cars sold in the world, it deserves the position it has got, though it's not that affordable, it is safe to say that it provides everything perfectly as a package.