For over a decade, Toyota Corolla was the highest selling car in Pakistan. It achieved this title by dethroning the Suzuki Mehran in 2009 when 10th generation Corolla (pre-facelift) was on sale.
Things went exceptional for Corolla when the 11th generation model was introduced in 2014. Indus Motor Company (IMC) was able to sell more than 50,000 units of 11th gen Corolla for 5 consecutive years, the feat which previously no other car and no other previous Corolla generation model has been able to achieve.
| 2014-15 | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 |
| 51,398 | 57,452 | 52,676 | 51,412 | 56,720 | 22,140 | 18,355 |
However in fiscal year 2019-20, sales of Toyota Corolla in Pakistan took a dip on back market slowdown followed by COVID-19 lockdowns and then the discontinuation of 1.3L variants in favor of Toyota Yaris from March 2020 onwards. Still the accumulated sales of 11th generation Corolla in Pakistan are estimated to have gone past 310,153 units from June 2014 to June 2021.
After the introduction of Yaris, the Corolla was no longer the highest selling sedan in our country, but now it seems to be taking its honor back. From the beginning of current fiscal year, the 11th generation model which debuted in Pakistan back in June 2014 & has received two facelifts since then, is doing extremely well in terms of sales.
According to PAMA data, in October 2021 alone, Corolla outsold the hot-selling Yaris with 3,341 units compared to 2,037 units of the latter and as of the first 4 months of this fiscal year, stands higher with 9,937 units sold compared to 9,277 units of Yaris. And while sales of Yaris show a 2.3% improvement over the numbers from previous year, the Corolla renders a staggering 101% increase.
Although the sales still lags behind the 660cc Suzuki Alto which enjoys sales of 20,773 units in the discussed period, the Corolla has definitely taken its title back as the bestselling sedan of Pakistan as its sales are 7% higher than that of Yaris. This is probably because the Yaris is now against some sort of competition in form of 6th gen Honda City as well as the Changan Alsvin which is getting popular day by day. The Corolla’s position in its price domain is still rather unchallenged.
The 11th gen Corolla has been around for more than 7 years now and is in 8th year of production in our country already, but with soaring sales its highly unlikely that IMC will bring the new 12th gen model which is already more than 3 years old in international markets. And since the 12th gen is built on TNGA platform, IMC will have to heavily invest in plant upgradation in order to be able to assemble the 12th gen Corolla locally.
Related: 12th gen Toyota Corolla Becomes 3 Years Old
Whether Toyota Corolla will retain its status as the bestselling sedan in the country will be an interesting thing to see, sales data from forthcoming months will clear the picture. However looking at the current sales trend, there seems to be no trouble for the aging 11th gen Corolla in Pakistan whatsoever.
A computer animation professional with over 23 years of industry experience having served in leading organizations, TV channels & production facilities in Pakistan. An avid car enthusiast and petrolhead with an affection to deliver quality content to help shape opinions. Formerly written for PakWheels as well as major publications including Dawn. Founder of CarSpiritPK.com
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