VFACTS: EVs top Australian sales mix in August

THE Australian new-vehicle market continued its strong 2026 run in August, with battery electric vehicles (BEVs) outselling every other powertrain type for the first time as Tesla’s Model Y returned to the top of the sales chart.

Combining the 100,939 vehicles reported through VFACTS with 7821 Tesla and Polestar registrations reported separately by the Electric Vehicle Council (EVC) puts the August market at 108,760 units, up 4.9 per cent on the corresponding month last year.

VFACTS volume alone increased 0.4 per cent year-on-year.

VFACTS registrations reached 811,388 units year-to-date, 0.1 per cent lower than at the same point of 2025. Adding the 37,532 Tesla and Polestar registrations contained in the EVC data lifts the broader January-to-August tally to approximately 848,920 vehicles.

However, it is the rapid change in powertrain preference that again stands out.

The Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) said 27,089 BEVs were registered across all reporting sources in August, representing a record 24.9 per cent of the entire market and an increase of 171 per cent against August 2025.

It was the highest monthly BEV result recorded in Australia.

On that measure, fully electric vehicles surpassed every other individual propulsion type during the month. Petrol-powered vehicles recorded 25,824 sales, diesel 23,608, conventional hybrids 18,662, and plug-in hybrids 10,591.

Within VFACTS, petrol volume fell 32.6 per cent year-on-year and diesel declined 22.5 per cent, while BEVs jumped 181.2 per cent and PHEVs increased 171.1 per cent. Conventional hybrid sales grew a more modest 7.4 per cent.

FCAI chief executive Tony Weber said the latest results demonstrated that changes to Australia’s new-vehicle market were becoming increasingly entrenched.

He said sustained BEV demand and changing brand preferences showed how quickly consumer choice and competition were reshaping the market, while stressing that charging infrastructure would need to keep pace.

“Accessible and dependable charging will remain critical to consumer confidence, particularly on highways, in rural and regional areas and for motorists without access to charging at home,” he said.

Toyota remained comfortably Australia’s biggest-selling marque in August with 19,712 vehicles, albeit down 5.2 per cent year-on-year.

BYD consolidated second position with 8231 sales, an increase of 68.8 per cent, while the addition of EVC figures pushes Tesla into third with 7685 deliveries, up 162.6 per cent.

Kia followed on 6500 units ahead of Mazda (6203), Hyundai (5355), GWM (4870), Ford (4816), MG (4767) and Geely (4504). Geely’s result was more than 10 times its August 2025 tally, while Ford fell almost 40 per cent year-on-year.

On VFACTS data alone – which does not include Tesla or Polestar – five Chinese brands occupied positions in the top 10. BYD, GWM, MG, Geely and Chery combined for 26,610 registrations, equivalent to 26.4 per cent of the VFACTS market and comfortably more than Toyota’s result.

Once Tesla is included, Chery is displaced to 11th position overall.

The shift is even more apparent when viewed by country of manufacture. Chinese-built vehicles accounted for 43,891 deliveries in August, up 88.9 per cent year-on-year and representing approximately 40.3 per cent of the combined market.

Japan followed with 24,892 vehicles, ahead of Thailand on 15,658, South Korea on 11,060 and Germany on 3718.

Tesla’s Model Y was comfortably Australia’s best-selling individual vehicle in August, recording 6414 registrations, up 176.0 per cent on the corresponding month last year.

It finished almost 1000 units clear of the Toyota RAV4 on 5470 (+32.9 per cent), followed by the Toyota HiLux on 4833 (+0.2 per cent).

Toyota also claimed fourth place with the Land Cruiser Prado on 2475 units (+21.7 per cent), while the Ford Ranger suffered one of the sharpest reversals among established volume models, falling 50.6 per cent to 2440 units.

Five Chinese-manufactured models filled the next five positions, led by the BYD Sealion 7 on 2213 units, ahead of the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro (2012), Geely EX5 (1947), GWM Haval Jolion (1891), and Zeekr 7X (1748).

The Geely EX5 improved 385.5 per cent year-on-year while the Zeekr 7X, which had no corresponding result last August, entered the national top 10.

Perhaps more significantly, the Model Y is now challenging Australia’s traditional ute leaders for the outright 2026 sales crown.

The Ford Ranger continues to lead year-to-date with 32,796 sales, but is now followed by the Toyota HiLux on 32,161 and Tesla Model Y on 31,454.

That leaves Tesla’s electric SUV just 1342 units behind the Ranger with four months of the year remaining – and only 707 units adrift of the HiLux.

SUVs continued to dominate the market with 72,752 sales, representing 66.9 per cent of August deliveries. Light commercial vehicles contributed 18,081 units (16.6 per cent), passenger cars 14,930 (13.7 per cent) and heavy commercial vehicles 2997 (2.8 per cent).

Medium SUVs were particularly strong, rising 45.1 per cent year-on-year to 37,328 units, while the once seemingly unstoppable 4×4 ute segment contracted 27.1 per cent to 13,507 vehicles.

The downturn is also evident across light commercial vehicles more broadly, which fell 22.1 per cent in VFACTS during August, while SUV registrations rose 9.5 per cent.

Private buyers provided much of the market’s support, with registrations up 7.7 per cent to 52,916 units according to VFACTS data.Business purchases fell 5.8 per cent to 36,426, government demand dropped 18.9 per cent to 2323, while rental registrations were effectively flat at 6277 units (+0.1 per cent).

Top 10 vehicle sales by make (August 2026)*:

Top 10 vehicle sales by model (August 2026)*:

State-by-state sales (August 2026)*:

*All sales data is supplied courtesy of the FCAI and the EVC.