Australia’s new vehicle market may have reached a record high in 2024, but increasing pressure on the cost of living has caused a slump in sales to private buyers.
Last year, a total of 624,626 new vehicles were delivered to private buyers, representing 50.5 percent of the total market.
This represented a slight decrease of less than one percent compared to 2023, due to increasing pressure on living costs towards the end of 2024.
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Best-selling vehicles to private buyers by volume
The Toyota RAV4 may have missed out on the title of Australia’s best-selling car in 2024, but it was a clear winner among private buyers.
In 2024, 34,849 of the 58,718 total deliveries of the RAV4 were to private buyers, rather than to corporations (ABN holders), government fleets and rental companies.
Its popularity was so great that it accounted for 5.6 percent of all private deliveries. Overall, RAV4 deliveries represented 4.7 percent of the new vehicle market.
It was a clear winner, with the Tesla Model Y dropping to second place after taking the private sales crown last year.
In 2024, Tesla delivered 16,705 Model Ys to private buyers, an 18.8 percent decline from the previous year — not as drastic as the overall 26.1 percent drop for the electric SUV.
However, the percentage of private buyers compared to total Model Y deliveries increased in 2024 compared to 2023, from 71.5 percent to 78.6 percent.
The MG ZS trailed behind, while the Mazda CX-5 beat the Ford Ranger into fourth place, despite finishing as the most popular car overall for the second year in a row in 2024.
Despite a small decline in overall sales this year, the Tesla Model 3 rose with 14,203 deliveries to private buyers, almost 1,100 more than in 2023.
It was also a breakout year for the Ford Everest, which fell short of the top 10 in 2023 but ranked seventh in 2024, with more than half of deliveries coming from private buyers.
| Model | Total turnover | Private sales | % of private sales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toyota RAV4 | 58,718 | 34,849 | 59.3% |
| Tesla Model Y | 21,253 | 16,705 | 78.6% |
| MG ZS | 22,629 | 16,315 | 72.1% |
| Mazda CX-5 | 22,835 | 16,104 | 70.5% |
| Ford Ranger | 62,593 | 15,519 | 24.8% |
| Tesla model 3 | 17,094 | 14,203 | 82.2% |
| Ford Everest | 26,494 | 13,356 | 50.4% |
| Toyota HiLux | 52,002 | 13,027 | 25.1% |
| Kia Sportage | 22,210 | 12,789 | 57.6% |
| Hyundai Kona | 17,374 | 12,689 | 73.0% |
| Mazda CX-3 | 18,461 | 12,292 | 66.6% |
| Hyundai Tucson | 19,061 | 11,730 | 61.5% |
| Isuzu MU-X | 17,978 | 11,531 | 64.1% |
| Isuzu D-Max | 24,031 | 10,685 | 44.5% |
| GWM Haval Jolion | 14,238 | 10,649 | 74.8% |
| Toyota Corolla | 24,027 | 10,208 | 42.5% |
| Mitsubishi Outlander | 27,613 | 10,029 | 36.3% |
| Mazda CX-30 | 12,672 | 9340 | 73.7% |
| Hyundai i30 | 12,682 | 8600 | 67.8% |
| Suzuki Jimny | 9697 | 8335 | 86.0% |
Best-selling private vehicles compared to total sales
Lotus takes home the unique honor of being the only brand to sell all its cars to private buyers by 2024, with the Emira, Eletre and Emeya avoiding entry into the rental, government or corporate fleet.
Right behind the trio was the Ram 3500, only two of which were not sold to private buyers.
The BYD Sealion 6 became Australia’s most popular plug-in hybrid in 2024, despite deliveries only starting in June. As much as 94 percent of sales went to private buyers, who took advantage of the federal government’s fringe benefits (FBT) exemption.
It should come as no surprise that six of the twenty best-selling passenger cars by volume were expensive models from Porsche, McLaren, Ferrari and Rolls-Royce, although it should be noted that the latter trio lumps certain models together.
Further down the list, SsangYong had three cars in the top 20, while the BYD Seal snuck onto the table, as did the Suzuki Jimny.
| Model | Total turnover | Private sales | % of private sales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lotus Emira | 138 | 138 | 100.0% |
| Lotus Eletre | 12 | 12 | 100.0% |
| Lotus Emeya | 5 | 5 | 100.0% |
| RAM memory 3500 | 47 | 45 | 95.7% |
| BYD Zeeleeuw 6 | 6198 | 5825 | 94.0% |
| Porsche Cayman | 445 | 413 | 92.8% |
| McLaren Coupe/Conv (all Australian vehicles) | 95 | 88 | 92.6% |
| Porsche911 | 783 | 721 | 92.1% |
| Mini clubman | 174 | 160 | 92.0% |
| Ssangyong Musso | 3197 | 2937 | 91.9% |
| Porsche Boxster | 301 | 272 | 90.4% |
| Rolls-Royce Coupé/Conv | 19 | 17 | 89.5% |
| Mini convertible | 188 | 168 | 89.4% |
| Ssang Yong Rexton | 1608 | 1429 | 88.9% |
| Ferrari Coupé/Conv (SF90 and 296) | 185 | 163 | 88.1% |
| Ssang Yong Korando | 427 | 373 | 87.4% |
| Ssang Yong Torres | 161 | 140 | 87.0% |
| BYD seal | 6393 | 5552 | 86.8% |
| Honda Civic | 966 | 834 | 86.3% |
| Suzuki Jimny | 9697 | 8335 | 86.0% |
MORE: VFACTS 2024: New vehicle sales hit record high, but slump expected soon
