New vehicle sales in Japan fell by 3.5% to 328,470 units in August 2024 from 340,341 units a year earlier, according to the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association.
The market was struggling to recover from the safety test rigging scandals at the end of 2023 when Daihatsu was ordered to halt production for several months of a number of key models which it shared also with Toyota, Mazda and Subaru. Despite being allowed to resume full production in May, Daihatsu had yet to normalise its operations.
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In June Toyota was banned from making deliveries of three models, the Corolla Fielder, Corolla Axio and Yaris Cross, after the transport ministry found new safety test irregularities. The ban was lifted in July after the vehicles’ safety was confirmed and production was resumed this first week of September.
The latest macro data showed the economy rebounded by 3.1% year on year in the second quarter after shrinking by 2.3% in the first quarter, driven by a recovery in private consumption including consumer spending and business activity.
In the first eight months of 2024, the vehicle market declined by almost 10% to 2,861,135 units after growing 16% to 3,169,993 a year ago, with passenger vehicle sales declining by 9% to 2,410,249 units while truck sales dropped 16% to 443,893 units. Sales of medium and large buses and coaches continued to grow strongly in this period, by 34% to 6,993 units.
Toyota sales fell by 19% to 871,712 units year to date (YTD) while Daihatsu sales plunged 48% to 199,623 units and Mazda sales were down 29% at 90,068 units.
Companies not affected by the recent Toyota Group scandals fared much better, including Suzuki with a 12% increase to 483,302 units, Honda with 447,440 units (+21%) while Nissan sales were just 1% lower at 321,218 units.
BYD Auto strengthened its Japanese line in June with the launch of a third model, the Seal EV, to establish a strong earlier presence in the country’s emerging zero emissions vehicle segment. In response to new rules regarding EV subsidies, BYD stepped up the roll out of its fast charging network and was offering cheap loans and discounts to lure buyers.
