Chinese vehicles now boast record 40 per cent share of Australian car market
Chinese car sales have dramatically accelerated in 2026 with the Asian superpower ending Japan’s 28-year run as Australia’s biggest supplier of new cars.
Chinese-made vehicles now boast a record 40 per cent share of Australia’s new car market with electric vehicle sales hitting a new record high six months on from the start of the Iran war.
The fully electric Shanghai-built Tesla Model Y was Australia’s top-selling car in August with 6414 ordered, with Chinese-manufactured cars making up six of the top ten spots on the sales charts as EVs made up one in four new cars sold.
Cars from China last month comprised 40.4 per cent of Australia’s vehicle market, data from the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries and the Electric Vehicle Council showed.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.Battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) had a record 24.9 per cent market share, most of which were made in China.
“The sustained level of BEV sales, together with changing brand preferences, shows how quickly consumer choice and competition are reshaping Australia’s new vehicle market,” the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries’ chief executive Tony Weber said.
As recently as January, Chinese cars had a 23.9 per cent share of the market. That was before the US strikes on Iran led to a blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, where a quarter of the world’s crude oil transits.
A month later, in February, China’s market share quickly grew to 27.4 per cent as it ended Japan’s uninterrupted run as Australia’s biggest supplier of new cars going back to 1998.
That figure jumped to 28.5 per cent in March during the first full month of the conflict in which average unleaded petrol prices climbed above $2 a litre as crude oil prices soared above $US100 a barrel for the first time since the Russian invasion of Ukraine four years earlier.
By June, China’s market share accelerated to 39.6 per cent, as 8072 Tesla Model Ys were sold, marking the highest monthly tally for a single model since November 2002, back when the Australian-made Holden Commodore was the bestselling vehicle.
Last month, Chinese cars had six of the top ten spots including the Tesla Model Y in first place with 6414 sales, the BYD Sealion 7 in sixth spot with 2213 sales, Chery Tiggo 4 Pro in seventh position with 2012 sales, Geely EX5 at No. 8 with 1947 sales, GWM Haval Jolion in ninth position with 1891 sales and rounding out the top ten, the Zeekr 7X with 1748 sales.
The Japanese-made Toyota RAV4 was in second place with 5470 sales, ahead of the Thai-built Toyota HiLux in third spot with 4833 sales, the Japanese-built Toyota Prado in fourth place with 2475 sales and the Thai-built, Australian-designed Ford Ranger in fifth place with 2440 sales.
