Best-selling cars of 2021 so far

Which cars are selling like the hottest of hot cakes in 2021? With official new-vehicle registration figures now available for the first half of the year, we can reveal Australia’s most popular cars.

While there are plenty of usual suspects in the mix, there are also some big surprises.

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2021 Toyota HiLux

1. Toyota HiLux: 28,076 sales

“Unbreakable” could just as easily refer to the HiLux’s stranglehold on the new-car market. It’s currently on track to be crowned Australia’s best-selling vehicle for the sixth consecutive year, and sales are up 26 per cent. The Toyota not getting its own way entirely, though, with the number two car in this list…

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2021 Ford Ranger Wildtrak X

2. Ford Ranger: 25,336 sales

An all-new Ranger is due in 2022 but there’s clearly plenty of life left in the current version, which has increased sales by 37 per cent year-to-date. It leads the HiLux in the bigger, 4x4 ute segment – where it has been strong traditionally – though continues to trail its Toyota rival in the 4x2 category despite 91 per cent growth. Remarkably, the Ranger currently accounts for two out of every three Fords sold in Australia.

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2022 Toyota RAV4

3. Toyota RAV4: 20,359 sales

Toyota’s mid-sized SUV retains it place on the sales podium, following up a strong 2019 and 2020 with 31 per cent year-to-date growth powered predominantly by the model’s first ever hybrid variant. The first updates for this generation were recently announced, though don’t arrive until 2022.

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2021 Mazda CX-5

4. Mazda CX-5: 15,290 sales

Mazda’s CX-5 was replaced by the RAV4 as the country’s favourite SUV in 2020 but is making a small fightback with 50 per cent growth so far in 2021. It’s also the most popular Mazda by a long shot; next is the CX-3 with 8985 sales. A significant update for this generation of CX-5, first introduced in 2017, is expected in 2022.

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2020 Toyota Corolla Sedan

5. Toyota Corolla: 13,819 sales

The veteran nameplate has the smallest growth of any of the top 10 models – a measly two per cent. That’s seen the Corolla slip from its fourth place of 2020 to fifth, and on the verge of being overtaken by another two utes. The rival i30 is not far behind, either, and putting in danger the Corolla’s hopes of being Australia’s best-selling passenger car for a ninth consecutive year.

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2021 Isuzu D-Max

6. Isuzu D-Max: 13,805 sales

The undoubted sales star of 2021 is the new-generation D-Max ute, introduced in 2020 and still going gangbusters. With triple-digit year-to-date growth (109 per cent), the D-Max has stormed into the top 10. In June it was the third most popular model, forming a rare trio of utes with the HiLux and Ranger in the top three places.

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2021 Mitsubishi Triton

7. Mitsubishi Triton: 13,176 sales

Unlike the D-Max, Mitsubishi’s ute is no stranger to the top 10 and it currently holds the seventh position it occupied at the end of last year. Sales are strong – up 37 per cent to be above the overall market’s rise (28 per cent).

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2021 Hyundai i30 Sedan

8. Hyundai i30: 13,139 sales

Sales of the i30 have benefited from the Elantra becoming the i30 sedan – which it always effectively was. Even accounting for that change, i30 still has useful growth (up 28 per cent) and its market share has increased from 18 to 25 per cent. The i30 was given a refresh earlier this year and more variants are coming, including updated N performance models. At the halfway stage of 2021, the i30 is less than 700 units behind the Corolla. Could it become the best-selling small car (and passenger car) by the end of the year?

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2022 Toyota LandCruiser

9. Toyota LandCruiser: 11,821 sales

The second unexpected model in the top 10. Huge demand for the last V8 versions of the LandCruiser 200 Series has driven 69 per cent year-to-date growth for the off-road icon, which was the fourth most popular model locally in April (and fifth most popular in June). An all-new 300 Series arrives later in 2021, swapping the V8 diesel for a twin-turbo V6 diesel. Just as remarkable is that the LandCruiser outsold the Prado which has now been pushed out of the top 10 chart (10,171 sales).

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2022 Kia Cerato

10. Kia Cerato: 10,756 sales

Australia’s favourite Kia maintains its top 10 status, if not that far ahead of the 11th-placed Prado. While the Cerato hasn’t featured in every monthly top 10 chart, the small hatch/sedan range has a respectable 20 per cent growth so far in 2021. A recent facelift should also help sales in the second half of the year.