New vehicle sales in Japan drop -5.6% year-on-year in 2022 to 4,201,321 units vs. 4,448,340 in 2021. Brand leader Toyota (-12.4%) is the only Top 8 carmaker to fare worse than the market and sees its share thaw from 32% last year to 29.7%.
Suzuki (-0.9%) is stable and stays in 2nd place with an improved 14.3% share while Daihatsu (+0.6%) overtakes Honda (-2%) to land in third position. The rest of the Top 8 is unchanged from 2021 with Nissan (-0.5%), Mazda (+2.5%), Subaru (-0.4%), and a very strong Mitsubishi (+16.6%) in tow.
Over in the regular cars ranking, the Toyota Yaris/Cross (-20.8%) secures a third consecutive annual win but endures a harsh year-on-year sales decline. The Toyota Corolla/Cross (+18.7%) climbs one spot to #2 overall. The Nissan Note (+22.1%) is also in great shape up two ranks to #3. The Toyota Roomy (-19%) which was #2 last year, falls back to #4 but still manages to sell over 100,000 units for the year. The Toyota Sienna (+19.2%) sports the biggest gain in the remainder of the Top 10 with the Honda Freed (+14.3%), Honda Fit (+2.5%), and Toyota Raize (+2.1%) also up. The Toyota Alphard (-36.6%) freefalls to #10. Below, the Nissan X-Trail (+50.3%), Mazda CX-5 (+40%), Toyota Noah (+30.5%), and Suzuki Jimny Wagon (+28.2%) impress.
List of the Top 20 Bestselling Car Models in Japan in 2022 (Full Year)
The 20 bestselling car models (excluding kei cars) in Japan in the full calendar year 2022 were as follows according to JADA (Japanese Auto Dealers Association). Interestingly 7 out of the top 10, and 13 out of the top 20 bestselling cars are from Toyota:
| Brand | Model | Sales 2022 | Sales 2021 | % 22/21 | ブランド通称名 | ブランド名 | |
| 1 | Toyota | Yaris | 168,557 | 212,927 | -20.8 | ヤリス | トヨタ |
| 2 | Toyota | Corolla | 131,548 | 110,865 | 18.7 | カローラ | トヨタ |
| 3 | Nissan | Note | 110,113 | 90,177 | 22.1 | ノート | 日産 |
| 4 | Toyota | Roomy | 109,236 | 134,801 | -19 | ルーミー | トヨタ |
| 5 | Toyota | Raize | 83,620 | 81,880 | 2.1 | ライズ | トヨタ |
| 6 | Honda | Freed | 79,525 | 69,577 | 14.3 | フリード | ホンダ |
| 7 | Toyota | Aqua | 72,084 | 72,495 | -0.6 | アクア | トヨタ |
| 8 | Toyota | Sienta | 68,922 | 57,802 | 19.2 | シエンタ | トヨタ |
| 9 | Honda | Fit | 60,271 | 58,780 | 2.5 | フィット | ホンダ |
| 10 | Toyota | Alphard | 60,225 | 95,049 | -36.6 | アルファード | トヨタ |
| 11 | Toyota | Noah | 57,696 | 44,211 | 30.5 | ノア | トヨタ |
| 12 | Nissan | Serena | 57,513 | 58,954 | -2.4 | セレナ | 日産 |
| 13 | Toyota | Voxy | 55,545 | 70,085 | -20.7 | ヴォクシー | トヨタ |
| 14 | Honda | Vezel | 50,736 | 52,669 | -3.7 | ヴェゼル | ホンダ |
| 15 | Suzuki | Sorio | 41,590 | 44,713 | -7 | ソリオ | スズキ |
| 16 | Honda | Step Wagon | 37,966 | 39,247 | -3.3 | ステップワゴン | ホンダ |
| 17 | Toyota | Land Cruiser | 35,390 | – | 5.7 | ランドクルーザーW | トヨタ |
| 18 | Toyota | Harrier | 34,182 | 74,575 | -54.2 | ハリアー | トヨタ |
| 19 | Toyota | Passo | 32,990 | – | 1.4 | パッソ | トヨタ |
| 20 | Toyota | Prius | 32,675 | 49,179 | -33.6 | プリウス | トヨタ |
As for Kei cars which are classified differently, the Honda N-BOX (+7%) improves to over 200,000 sales, making it the bestselling vehicle in Japan above the Toyota Yaris/Cross. The Daihatsu Tanto (-7.8%) overtakes the Suzuki Spacia (-22.2%) to rank #2 overall while the Daihatsu Move (-1%) remains in 4th position. The Suzuki Wagon R (+19.2%) sports a splendid year-on-year gain and leaps up two spots from last year to #5, leapfrogging past the Nissan Roox (-14.3%) and Suzuki Hustler (-14.7%). It’s also a strong year for the Suzuki Alto (+10.3%) up two ranks to #8, passing the Daihatsu Mira (-0.7%) and Taft (-8.7%).
Bestselling Kei Car Models in Japan in 2022 (Full Year)
The top-selling mini passenger car models in Japan in the full-year 2022 were:
| Maker | Model Name | 通称名 | Sales 2022 | Sales 2021 | % 22/21 | |
| 1 | Honda | N-BOX | Ｎ-ＢＯＸ | 202,197 | 189,940 | 7.0 |
| 2 | Daihatsu | Tanto | タント | 107,810 | 116,912 | -7.8 |
| 3 | Suzuki | Spacia | スペーシア | 100,206 | 128,881 | -22.2 |
| 4 | Daihatsu | Move | ムーヴ | 94,837 | 95,840 | -1.0 |
| 5 | Suzuki | Wagon R | ワゴンＲ | 82,213 | 68,970 | 19.2 |
| 6 | Nissan | Roox | ルークス | 72,600 | 84,748 | -14.3 |
| 7 | Suzuki | Hustler | ハスラー | 70,373 | 82,486 | -14.7 |
| 8 | Suzuki | Alto | アルト | 67,204 | 60,919 | 10.3 |
| 9 | Daihatsu | Mirror | ミラ | 65,317 | 65,803 | -0.7 |
| 10 | Daihatsu | Taft | タフト | 56,861 | 62,278 | -9 |
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