Toyota has defended its top position as the world’s largest car manufacturer and achieved a sales record in 2025. The Japanese group increased its global sales by 4.6 percent to 11.3 million vehicles, the company announced on Thursday. This left the Japanese with their German rivals Volkswagen behind them and achieved the most cars sold for the sixth time in a row. The Wolfsburg-based company is currently struggling with high domestic costs and strong competition China, they had reported a decline in sales of 0.5 percent to almost nine million vehicles.
Japan and the USA as the engine
Growth drivers for Toyota were primarily the USA and the domestic market Japan, which together accounted for more than 40 percent of the parent company’s sales. The core brands Toyota and Lexus grew by 3.7 percent worldwide to a record level of 10.5 million units, with the group particularly benefiting from the strong demand for hybrid vehicles in the USA benefited.
Exports from Japan to the United States climbed by a good 14 percent to around 615,000 vehicles. The SUV model RAV4 was particularly in demand. Toyota also recorded growth in the highly competitive Chinese market for the first time in four years, with an increase of 0.2 percent.
When it comes to drive technology, the hybrid models continue to pay off for the Japanese. Gasoline-electric drives accounted for 42 percent of the core brand’s sales worldwide, while pure electric cars (BEVs) accounted for 1.9 percent. In addition to the core brands, the group’s total sales also include the small car subsidiary Daihatsu and the truck manufacturer Hino Motors.