Top selling cars in New Zealand
According to the most recent government statistics, from 2013 to 2023, the number of cars, utes and motorbikes on our roads grew by a third, from around 3.4m to 4.5m.
However, over the past five years, our appetite for new passenger vehicles has wavered. Due to the tighter economic climate, in 2024 cars sales were down considerably, by around 21%, year on year. However, last year they rebounded by 12%.
- 2021: 112,008 cars
- 2022: 116,334 cars
- 2023: 110,488 cars
- 2024: 87,410 cars
- 2025: 97,972 cars
Top selling car models New Zealand
The top five best-selling cars in 2022 and 2023 were the same: the RAV4, Outlander, Model Y, Swift and Eclipse Cross.
However, over the past couple of years, there's been a bit of a shake-up at the top. The Eclipse Cross, which sold 1030 last year, has been usurped by its little brother, the ASX, and the Model Y has dropped out of the top 15 altogether.
In 2025, there were 1284 new Tesla Model Ys registered in the country, placing it 17th on the best-seller list.
Rank | Top Selling Cars 2024 | Top Selling Cars 2025 |
|---|---|---|
1 | Toyota RAV4 (10,533) | Toyota RAV4 (11,295) |
2 | Mitsubishi ASX (3763) | Mitsubishi ASX (4970) |
3 | Mitsubishi Outlander (3248) | Mitsubishi Outlander (4309) |
4 | Kia Seltos (3140) | Ford Everest (3323) |
5 | Suzuki Swift (2704) | Kia Seltos (3189) |
6 | Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross (2394) | Toyota Yaris Cross (2018) |
7 | Ford Everest (2341) | MG ZS (1971) |
8 | Toyota Corolla (1854) | Toyota Corolla (1953) |
9 | Toyota Yaris Cross (1841) | Hyundai Tucson (1841) |
10 | Kia Sportage (1730) | Suzuki Swift (1825) |
11 | Mazda CX-5 (1652) | GWM Haval H6 (1815) |
12 | Kia Stonic (1597) | Toyota Landcruiser Prado (1668) |
13 | MG ZS (1528) | Mazda CX-5 (1609) |
14 | Toyota Highlander (1419) | Toyota Corolla Cross (1476) |
15 | Toyota Corolla Cross (1404) | Kia Sportage (1360) |
Source: NZTA
Petrol vs hybrid & EV sales
Between 2022 and 2023, pure EV models increased their market share from 10% to 14.5%. However, it's clear the end of the EV subsidies has had a big effect. While hybrid sales remain strong, new EV numbers have plummeted over the past two years. Just 7% of vehicles sold last year were EVs.
Plug-in hybrids, which are now subject to road user charges, are also out of favour. Just 4658 plug-in hybrids were registered in NZ last year, compared to 37,593 hybrid petrol cars, a figure that almost matches the number of new pure petrol vehicles on our roads (38,903).
Sales by Engine Type 2025 |
|---|
40% Petrol |
38% Petrol Hybrid |
8% Diesel |
7% EV |
5% Plug-in Hybrid |
2% Diesel Hybrid |
Source: NZTA
Top selling EV models
As we mention above, EV sales have dropped considerably over the past couple of years:
- 2023: 21,032 EVs
- 2024: 6341 EVs
- 2025: 6871 EVs
However, despite many new models hitting the market, Tesla remained the country's most popular EV.
After a sluggish start to the year, Tesla hit the top of the EV charts thanks to the popularity of its new and improved Model Y.
Over 2025, 1284 of the new-look Model Ys were registered. Combined with the 308 Model 3s that arrived in the country, it gave Tesla a 23% share of the EV market, beating BYD's 17% share.
And it's worth noting that BYD had four passenger car models – the Atto 3, Dolphin, Seal and Sealion – to Tesla’s two: Model 3 and Model Y.
Rank | Top Selling EVs 2024 | Top Selling EVs 2025 |
|---|---|---|
1 | Tesla Model Y (826) | Tesla Model Y (1284) |
2 | Tesla Model 3 (461) | BYD Atto 3 (555) |
3 | Ford Mustang Mach-E (452) | Polestar 2 (354) |
4 | BYD Atto 3 (383) | BYD Sealion 7 (337) |
5 | Nissan Leaf (308) | Tesla Model 3 (308) |
6 | Volkswagen ID.4 (275) | Kia EV5 (276) |
7 | MG4 (256) | Kia EV3 (255) |
8 | Volkswagen ID.5 (232) | BYD Dolphin (221) |
9 | Kia EV9 (197) | Toyota BZ4X (192) |
10 | Polestar 2 (188) | BMW i (176) |
11 | Hyundai Ioniq 5 (174) | Honda e:N1 (171) |
12 | BYD Dolphin (173) | Mini Countryman (151) |
13 | BMW X1 (144) | Omoda E5 (128) |
14 | Skoda Enyaq (138) | Geely EX5 | Mini Aceman (111) |
15 | BYD Seal (129) | Volvo EX30 (109) |
Source: NZTA
New Zealand’s favourite passenger car brands
Japanese brands have long been the top selling cars in NZ, especially if you count commercial vehicles. But even without ute sales, Toyota and Mitsubishi comprise a third of the passenger car market.
However, while Japanese brands hold a large share of the overall market, Korea's Kia and Hyundai are also big players in the passenger sector. But it's the upstart brands of GWM and MG that have made the biggest inroads into the top car charts over the past two years.
New passenger car/SUV registrations by brand, no. sales and market share %:
Rank | Top Selling Brands 2024 | Top Selling Brands 2025 |
|---|---|---|
1 | Toyota 20,723 (24%) | Toyota 22,402 (23%) |
2 | Mitsubishi 9916 (11%) | Mitsubishi 10,815 (11%) |
3 | Kia 8683 (10%) | Kia 8597 (9%) |
4 | Suzuki 5198 (6%) | Suzuki 4925 (5%) |
5 | Ford 4664 (5%) | Mazda 4920 (5%) |
6 | Mazda 3731 (4%) | Ford 4677 (5%) |
7 | Hyundai 3641 (4%) | MG 4131 (4%) |
8 | Honda 3176 (4%) | Hyundai 4028 (4%) |
9 | MG 3067 (4%) | Honda 3626 (4%) |
10 | GWM 2636 (3%) | GWM 3237 (3%) |
11 | Nissan 2443 (3%) | Nissan | Subaru 2306 (2%) |
12 | Volkswagen 2189 (3%) | BYD 1904 (2%) |
13 | Subaru 2002 (2%) | BMW 1787 (2%) |
14 | BMW 1486 (2%) | Volkswagen 1721 (2%) |
15 | Mercedes-Benz 1360 (2%) | Tesla 1592 (2%) |
Source: NZTA
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