Tesla Model Y overtakes Toyota Corolla to become the world’s best-selling car.
According to data released by market research organization JATO Dynamics, Tesla Model Y has become the world’s best-selling model in 2023 with global sales of 1.23 million units, surpassing Toyota RAV4 and Toyota Corolla, which have long occupied the top two sales lists. This is the first time that a pure electric model has topped the list of the world’s best-selling models, indicating that the automotive industry is accelerating its transformation into the electrification era.
JATO Dynamics collected actual sales data from 53 major auto markets around the world and made estimates in some regions, inferring that global sales of Model Y could reach 1.23 million units, while Toyota RAV4 and Corolla were 1.07 million units and 1.01 million units respectively. The detailed rankings are still to be announced in the second quarter, but Model Y has basically locked in the championship.
Model Y benefits from Tesla’s frequent price promotion adjustments and production capacity expansion. Tesla had previously predicted that global sales of Model Y would exceed 1.2 million units in 2023, becoming the world’s largest sales volume for a single model. Taking the Chinese market as an example, Tesla implemented multiple rounds of price cuts for Model Y in 2022, which stimulated a surge in Model Y sales in China, accounting for more than half of the total sales of Model 3/Y.
Of course, sharp price cuts also led to a decline in Tesla’s profits, but the hot sales increased the sales volume and still brought considerable cash flow to Tesla. The strong rise of Model Y ended the sales dominance of Japanese car companies for many years.