Japanese cars held the Australian market for decades, but Chinese cars are about to break the streak.

Four years ago, BYD's monthly sales in Australia were zero, as it only officially entered the Australian market in November 2022.

But no one expected that in less than four years, this new Chinese brand established in the Australian market actually cornered the Japanese car brands that had been operating in Australia for 28 years.

According to Nikkei China, in June this year, BYD's sales in Australia reached 19,000, with a gap of only 243 units compared to the local number one, Toyota, meaning the two are nearly level.

Data from the Australian Federal Automotive Industries Chamber is even more direct: in the first seven months of this year, BYD's cumulative sales broke 60,000, with a market share of up to 8.5%, leaving behind old faces like Ford, Mazda, and Hyundai, second only to Toyota.

Additionally, Chinese cars and Japanese cars in the Australian market show completely different trends. According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, compared to the same period last year, Mazda sales dropped 17%, Toyota dropped 21%, Subaru and Mitsubishi both dropped 25%, while BYD increased by 124% year-on-year, with Chery and Geely also achieving varying degrees of growth.

But data is ultimately just appearance. What is truly worth pondering is, why does a brand that had nothing to do with this market four years ago manage to create such a stir on someone else's turf? Why does this country, accounting for less than 2% of global new car sales, warrant Chinese car companies breaking their heads to rush in? What does conquering Australia really mean for Chinese cars making their way into the world?

Reading this article you will understand:

1. What is the landscape of the Australian automotive market?

2. Why is it specifically Australia?

3. What irreplaceable strategic value does the Australian market hold for the global expansion of Chinese cars?

Three keywords to fully explain the Australian automotive market

To understand the Australian automotive market, three keywords are enough: Monopoly, Rise, Siege.

Monopoly, refers to Japanese cars.

Using "Monopoly" to describe Japanese cars is not an exaggeration. Taking sales in 2025 as an example, Australia's total new car sales for the year reached 1.241 million, with Toyota alone accounting for 239,000 units, becoming the sales champion of the Australian automotive market for 23 consecutive years, with a market share close to 20%. Besides Toyota, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Isuzu, Subaru, and Nissan all ranked in the top ten of the 2025 Australian automotive sales brand list.

In the entire Australian market, only American Ford, Tesla, Korean Hyundai, Kia, German Volkswagen, Chinese BYD, Great Wall, Chery, and MG can compete with Japanese cars, but sales have never managed to exceed Japanese cars. Exaggerating, take a glance at a gas station, seven out of ten cars display Japanese car logos.

Rise, it's time for Chinese brands to take the stage.

In the Australian market, although Chinese cars have never managed to surpass Japanese cars, their strong growth momentum has been narrowing the gap between the two.

From January to July 2026, among the top ten car brands in Australia, Chinese brands accounted for four, namely:

BYD ranked second, sales were 60,192 units;

Great Wall Motor ranked seventh, sales were 34,877 units;

Chery Automobile ranked eighth, sales were 29,579 units;

MG ranked tenth, sales were 27,430 units.

In addition, there is Geely with sales of 14,655 units, OMODA & JAECOO with sales of 10,943 units (Chery's J&O dual-brand matrix for overseas markets), and Zeekr with sales of 7,950 units. Moreover, both Chery and Geely are building multi-brand matrices. If sub-brand sales are combined, the share would be even larger. The question is no longer about Chinese cars "whether they exist," but "how much share they can seize."

Siege, that is the third keyword.

This is not one brand fighting Japanese cars alone, but a group of Chinese brands rushing into the Japanese brand's territory. BYD tears open a gap with EVs and PHEVs, Great Wall uses hard hits with pickups and SUVs, Chery spreads the line of battle with multi-brand matrices, Geely and Zeekr attack from the high-end and intelligence angles. Meanwhile, for Japanese cars this year, except Honda, Toyota dropped 21%, Mazda dropped 17%, Subaru and Mitsubishi both dropped 25%, the gap will only widen.

So, what do Australian consumers actually think? Can Chinese cars surpass the deeply rooted Japanese cars in Australia?

This question has already been answered by local authoritative institutions. According to research by AADA (Australian Automotive Dealers Association), China's momentum in supplying vehicles to the Australian market is strengthening. It is expected to become the main source of vehicle imports by 2035, accounting for 43% of all new car sales by 2035.

That is to say, Chinese cars topping Australia has almost become a foregone conclusion.

Why is it Australia?

Chinese cars breaking the monopoly in the local market in Australia is clearly not a coincidence, but a superposition of three characteristics.

The first characteristic is that Australia does not have well-known local automobile enterprises.

As early as 1948, the "Holden 48-215" came off the production line, this is the first car independently manufactured in Australia. For a long time, Holden was the mainstream in the local automotive market. However, Australia has a vast land and sparse population, with an annual scale of just over 1 million units, which cannot be compared with huge markets like China and Southeast Asia, leaving extremely limited growth space.

(Holden Auto Logo)

On the other hand, Australian labor costs are extremely high, while there are no particularly leading technical advantages, and they cannot compete with giants in the US, Germany, Japan, etc., in terms of going global.

Finally, on October 20, 2017, the last car came off the line for Holden Motor Company, and Australia's automotive industry was declared ended. The then Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull even stated: "This is the end of an era."

The lack of local brands instead cleared the track for latercomers. Whoever has good products, fair prices, and fast delivery can get a seat at the table.

To put it plainly, this is a place where you eat based on your skills.

The second characteristic is zero tariffs.

In June 2015, the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement was officially signed. After that, tariffs for Chinese complete vehicles entering Australia gradually dropped to zero.

That is to say, Australia is willing to "open its doors" to Chinese cars. While Chinese cars were blocked by tariffs in other markets, in Australia they only had to worry about "is the product good enough". This also gave Chinese car companies great development space.

Finally, the forced push from high oil prices.

Since the Hormuz Strait channel was blocked this year, global oil prices soared directly, and Australia even released heavy news that fuel reserves were in complete emergency.

Under this situation, Australian consumers turned to new energy vehicles with lower travel costs, and this happens to be the strong suit of Chinese car companies, offering not only better experience but also more competitive prices.

Taking BYD as an example, according to "Nikkei China", Toyota RAV4 starts from about 46,000 AUD, while BYD's Sealion 6 starts from about 43,000 AUD. Consumers will choose the lower-priced one after comparison.

No local car companies, no tariff thresholds, and oil prices constantly hindering, these three characteristics superimposed together equal paving a shortest and most fair track for Chinese new energy vehicles.

But running smoothly does not mean winning. Even if the track is flat, if the car is bad, it's useless. Chinese brands' ability to go from "getting in" to "standing firm" in Australia relies not only on external conditions but also on the capabilities of the products themselves.

Next, let's talk about what this market in Australia really means for Chinese car export.

Strategic value behind sales

If attention is only focused on sales, the perspective is too small. The value of the Australian market for Chinese car export is far more than just a "place to sell cars".

In the early years, there were actually Chinese brands entering Australia, but due to Australia's strict quality standards, they were eventually forced to withdraw. This time, the fact that Chinese brands can collectively achieve growth in Australia is actually the most powerful proof that "Made in China is moving towards high-end".

It should be known that Australia's vehicle standards are mainly safety crash tests (ANCAP) and vehicle design rules (ADR). ANCAP was established in 1992, it is the second new car safety evaluation system globally, cross-referencing and benchmarking with Europe's E-NCAP, with data interconnection. ADR is even more of a mandatory technical standard; if not met, you cannot even enter the market. It has requirements for active safety, passive safety, environmental protection requirements, special vehicle specifications, etc.

It is visible that Chinese car companies being able to stand their ground in the Australian market is itself a pass with extremely high gold content.

In addition, success in the Australian market also completed a psychological wall-breaking for the old order.

Japanese cars ruled the Australian market for decades, so long that Australians themselves almost forgot that the "top spot could change hands", but Chinese brands pried open this iron plate in just a few years.

This is not only a fight for share, but also an embodiment of the strength of the Chinese automotive industry, which is that in a mature market with no trade protection and fully free competition, Chinese cars can fight head-on with any century-old brand.

This reversal of psychological expectation has extremely high value for the future acceleration of Chinese car exports.

Epilogue

A few years ago, probably no one dared to think Chinese cars could force Japanese cars to this extent in Australia, but Chinese brands achieved it.

What is even more anticipated is that this is just the beginning. As early as May 2026, the European Automobile Manufacturers Association stated that Chinese brands exceeded Japanese brands in market share for the first time in 31 European countries in May 2026. Similarly, in the Thai market, which is also a "Japanese car backyard", Chinese brands are gradually breaking the Japanese car monopoly pattern. Now in the Australian market, Chinese brands are about to "capture another city".

The signals conveyed by these victories are far more weighty than the sales numbers themselves. It proves that Chinese cars' export is not relying on the luck of one or two markets, but a structural, irreversible industrial force.

After all, winning a tough battle head-on in a fully free-competition mature market is more effective than any advertising placement.

References:

1. [Reviewing Export｜Chinese Car Companies Occupied Nearly 18% of Australian Auto Market in 2025], Zhineng Auto

2. [Major Reshuffle in Australian Auto Market for First 7 Months: Chinese Brands Account for 4 of Top 10!], Australian Auto Magazine

3. [China EV Sales Surge in Australia, BYD Approaches Toyota], Nikkei China

4. [New Research Maps Australia’s Automotive Future], AADA

5. [Australian Auto Market, Chinese Car Companies Strongly Breakout], Global Times

6. [As a Resource Powerhouse, Why Does Australia Not Manufacture Cars], Automotive Business Review Magazine