Best-selling car models in Japan 2021
In 2021, Toyota's Yaris was the best-selling passenger car model within the Japanese automobile market, with a sales volume of almost 213 thousand units. Toyota compact minivan Roomy ranked second, sales reaching over 134 thousand units.
Why Japanese customers prefer domestic brands
Not only were the best-selling car models exclusively manufactured by domestic companies, moreover, were the most popular automotive brands in the country predominantly Japanese. Not a single foreign brand made it into the top ten of the leading vehicle manufacturers in Japan. The top three foreign bestsellers were Mercedes Benz, BMW, and Volkswagen, indicating a preference of Japanese consumers for premium segment imports. Yet, they tend to invest in the vehicle technology of their home market. Foreign car brands are often seen as status symbols among Japanese consumers as the initial outlay and maintenance costs of imported vehicles are comparably high.
Japan’s unique auto market: mini cars
Besides a higher price point, there is one other important reason for choosing domestic brands over vehicles produced by foreign carmakers - kei cars. The mini-sized vehicles are a somewhat unique feature of the Japanese automotive landscape. With their minimized exterior, kei cars are not only easier to navigate around the narrow road system of Japan's metropolitan areas, but they also provide an affordable alternative to regular-sized vehicles. There were years, Honda N-Box sales easily surpassed the Yaris, although the Yaris topped the ranking of the best-selling regular-sized passenger cars. In 2021, N-Box sales were lower. Nonetheless, the N-Box's popularity confirmed, yet again, the significance of mini vehicles for the Japanese car market.
Why Japanese customers prefer domestic brands
Not only were the best-selling car models exclusively manufactured by domestic companies, moreover, were the most popular automotive brands in the country predominantly Japanese. Not a single foreign brand made it into the top ten of the leading vehicle manufacturers in Japan. The top three foreign bestsellers were Mercedes Benz, BMW, and Volkswagen, indicating a preference of Japanese consumers for premium segment imports. Yet, they tend to invest in the vehicle technology of their home market. Foreign car brands are often seen as status symbols among Japanese consumers as the initial outlay and maintenance costs of imported vehicles are comparably high.
Japan’s unique auto market: mini cars
Besides a higher price point, there is one other important reason for choosing domestic brands over vehicles produced by foreign carmakers - kei cars. The mini-sized vehicles are a somewhat unique feature of the Japanese automotive landscape. With their minimized exterior, kei cars are not only easier to navigate around the narrow road system of Japan's metropolitan areas, but they also provide an affordable alternative to regular-sized vehicles. There were years, Honda N-Box sales easily surpassed the Yaris, although the Yaris topped the ranking of the best-selling regular-sized passenger cars. In 2021, N-Box sales were lower. Nonetheless, the N-Box's popularity confirmed, yet again, the significance of mini vehicles for the Japanese car market.
