Electric cars bounce back: Tesla Model Y and BYD Sealion 7 deliver in September just behind Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger utes

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September 2025 marks another month of strong, steady vehicle sales in Australia, totalling 106,891 total vehicle sales when combining findings from the Federal Chamber of Automobile Industry’s (FCAI) VFACTS and Electric Vehicle Council’s monthly sales results.

The result brings Australia’s total vehicle sales to 946,518 deliveries year-to-date (YTD). 

The month of September was led by Hilux and Ranger, but in a surprise turn, two electric vehicles made it into Australia’s top ten most popular models. 

The Tesla Model Y was Australia’s third most popular car in September, posting an impressive sales figure of 3927, now at 17,237 sales YTD.

Tesla’s fresh-faced rival BYD saw success, too. BYD arrived in Australia just two years ago, but is already Australia’s eight most popular brand. Its Model Y rival, the Sealion 7, was Australia’s eight most popular car last month with 1887 deliveries. 

Year to date, 8,483 Sealion 7 electric SUVs have sold — less than half of Tesla’s ‘Y’ sales figure, but nonetheless impressive for a vehicle less than twelve months old. 

An impressive 15.9 percent of September new vehicle sales were reported to be full EVs when combining the results of the FCAI and EV Council.

This bucks the trend of electric car stagnation, suggesting Australia could be in a second wave of EV sales growth. 

By category, September’s sales were led by SUVs, which contributed 65,511 units to take a 61.3 percent stake. Utes and pick-ups contributed 23,762 deliveries, securing a second-best 22.2 percent stake of last month’s total sales figure. 

Passenger cars took the third-largest share of sales by category, with 13,746 deliveries making up 12.9 percent of new vehicle sales for September.

Best selling car brands in September

For the umpteenth time, Toyota took the position of Australia’s most popular car brand, and in a similar likeness, it will again be trailed by Ford, Mazda, Kia and Hyundai. 

Toyota has now banked 181,809 vehicle sales year-to-date, leading second-place Ford’s 70,881 vehicle sales by a staggering 110,928 units.

And while Ford can lay claim to second place in popularity for September, its position is much less secure than Toyota’s. Just 639 units separate Ford and Mazda, with the latter settling for third in popularity for September, and posting a YTD sales figure of 70,242.

Note that Mazda held second place in August. 

At the outer edges of the podium sits Kia, in fourth place with 62,884 YTD deliveries, and Hyundai, fifth with 58,458 deliveries. 

Mitsubishi remains in sixth for the year with 47,650 deliveries. Chasing Cars is eager to see how the Renault-sourced new-generation ASX will assist the three-diamond brand in bolstering its sales moving forward. 

September is another great month for Chinese brands. Great Wall Motors (GWM) again took seventh, matching its August result. BYD did the same, snagging eight, and MG completed the Chinese-brand-sandwich by placing ninth. 

MG’s September result is an improvement of one position over August, meaning Isuzu Ute has fallen to tenth position. Daunting, but hardly surprisingly for a brand which sells just two passenger vehicles. 

Manufacturer	Total vehicles sales YTD	Total vehicles sales YTD 2024	% difference
Toyota	181,809	183,606	-0.98
Ford	70,881	74,564	-4.94
Mazda	70,242	73,487	-4.42
Kia	62,884	62,473	0.66
Hyundai	58,458	53,947	8.36
Mitsubishi	47,650	56,998	-16.40
GWM	39,343	31,793	23.75
BYD	37,923	15,181	149.81
MG	32,620	36,096	-9.63
Isuzu Ute	31,760	37,577	-15.48

Best selling vehicles in September

The Toyota Hilux snagged first sales place in September, counting 5047 deliveries to reach a YTD total of 40,813 units. 

The Ford Ranger took a close second at 4867 registrations. Year to date, 42,050 Rangers have been sold. 

In third place was the Tesla Model Y (3927), an astounding number for the mid-size electric SUV no-doubt bolstered by momentum acquired from the American EV brand’s Full Self Driving (Supervised) tech. 

Tesla’s Model Y sales result shows a 162.2-percent increase over its posting last year, and in more recent terms, a 69.0 percent increase over its August 2025 sales figure. 

Not only was the Toyota RAV4 beaten by an electric vehicle last month, the Ford Everest also beat the popular family SUV — though by a slimmer margin of just four units. 

Sales of the Toyota RAV4 are sure to skyrocket when the next-generation model makes its debut next year.

September delivered another top-ten podium finish for the Chery Tiggo 4 small SUV, which secured 2048 deliveries. The result marks the third consecutive month in which the Tiggo 4 has placed on the podium.

Australia’s third most popular ute in September was the Isuzu D-Max, totalling 1989 sales for September to claim seventh place overall. 

The Sealion 7 electric mid-size SUV secured 1887 sales this month, taking eighth place overall.

A whisker (two sales!) behind the BYD EV was the ninth place Toyota Prado.

A successful month too for the similarly sized (and equally cheap) Tiggo 4 rival, the Haval Jolion. The Jolion, securing 1881 deliveries in September, took 10th place. The Jolion was undoubtedly assisted by limited time September deals offered by manufacturer GWM.

Make / Model	September 2025 sales	September ‘24 sales	% difference
Toyota HiLux	5047	4313	17.02
Ford Ranger	4867	4485	8.52
Tesla Model Y	3927	1498	162.15
Ford Everest	2558	2902	-11.85
Toyota Rav4	2554	5182	-50.71
Chery Tiggo 4	2048	0	NA
Isuzu D-Max	1989	2612	-23.85
BYD Sealion 7	1887	0	NA
Toyota Prado	1885	1	188400.00
Haval Jolion	1881	1125	67.20