Good news for Toyota, despite a few complicated months and a declining car market, the Japanese brand maintains its first place in the ranking of manufacturers that sell the most cars worldwide. It preserves its leading position ahead of Volkswagen and Hyundai with just under 11 million vehicles sold (10.8 million to be precise).
When we look a little more closely at the details of Toyota's best-selling models, one thing is surprising. The market leader only sells 1.4% of electric cars. This is obviously very low and even if this figure is slightly up compared to last year (139,892 electric cars sold compared to 30,000 fewer in 2023), it is nonetheless ridiculous in view of the volumes achieved elsewhere.
A delay in getting started on electric
Several factors can explain such a gap in the figures between Toyota and its competitors. The first is obvious, the Japanese company only arrived on the 100% electric market very late and it only has one major model under its own brand, the Bz4x, a vehicle that is otherwise quite unconvincing. Of course, the catalog is more extensive on the side of its luxury brand, Lexus, but it is nonetheless meager compared to manufacturers such as Volkswagen and Hyundai. At the German company, for example, the share of electric vehicles reaches 8% with around 750,000 zero-emission cars sold last year.
If Toyota has accumulated such a delay, it is deliberate. The manufacturer preferred to bet on hybrid, a technology that it masters at its fingertips and for which it is recognized. Thus, in 2024, hybrid vehicles still represented 40% of Toyota sales. This generous proportion was of course helped by the arrival of a new Prius, but not only that, it corresponds to an assumed desire of the manufacturer as well as a renewed interest in Full hybrid technology, particularly in Europe.
Can Toyota continue to ignore electric?
Can Toyota's strategy allow it to maintain its first place? So far, the Japanese has not had to suffer from its delay in electric, but the situation could change in the coming years. On the one hand, because the transition to electric is accelerating even if some doubts remain depending on the geographical areas.
Above all, by depriving itself of a competitive offer on electric, Toyota is struggling to maintain itself in the most promising markets. This is particularly the case in China where its sales have fallen by 7%. At the same time, the most dynamic players at the moment are manufacturers who are betting heavily on both electric and the Chinese market. The two best examples are BYD (which just overtook Honda and Nissan in the ranking) and of course Tesla. So the question is: how long will Toyota be able to keep its crown?
Source: Electrek
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