Wednesday 5 October 2022 07:21 AM Tesla electric Model Y car outsells every other SUV, only beaten by Toyota ... trends now
A Tesla electric car has outsold every other SUV in Australia in the best-ever monthly sales result for Elon Musk's brand.
Only the Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger utes in September outsold the Chinese-built Tesla Model Y, new Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries data revealed.
With 4,359 sales, the Tesla SUV outsold every other SUV in the top ten, including the popular Mazda CX-5, Mitsubishi Outlander, Toyota RAV4 and Kia Sportage.
The result from last month came after federal parliament legislated a 43 per cent reduction in carbon emissions by 2030, with Labor gaining support from the Greens.
A majority, or 52 per cent of the 811,130 new cars sold in Australia since January, have been SUVs or four-wheel drives, with long waiting lists for the Toyota LandCruiser.
Australians have ordered 21,771 battery electric cars so far this year, for a still small 2.7 per cent market share.
The federal government hopes to improve these sales, and reduce Australia's carbon footprint, by funding more charging stations.
A Tesla electric car has outsold every SUV in Australia in the best-ever monthly sales result for Elon Musk's brand (pictured is a Model Y in Shanghai where is it made)
But EVs are still a lot more popular than hybrids or plug-in hybrids, with 5,141 sold in 2022 to date.
The Tesla Model Y - priced from $72,300 - was Australia's third bestselling car, in the second full month of going on sale locally.
The sales tally of 4,359 represented a quadrupling of the August figure of 1,017 orders.
The slightly more affordable Tesla Model 3 sedan - priced from $63,900 - in August was Australia's fourth most popular car with 2,380 sales.
In a sign of changing motoring tastes, the Hyundai i30 was last month the only petrol-powered passenger car in the top ten, with 1,733 sales as the Toyota Corolla last month failed to make the list.
