BEVs to represent 2% of the Japanese passenger car market in 2024
- Sales of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) are still failing to take off in Japan, with only a 2% market share for this type of vehicle in 2024 (56,299 units), which is the lowest proportion of the world's largest markets and no better than in 2023.
- Several factors are contributing to this weakness in BEV sales in Japan:
1. First, full-hybrid models have been a significant component of car sales in Japan since the appearance of the first Toyota Prius in 1997. These models represent 34% of the Japanese market in 2024 (1,292,633 units).
2. Second, Toyota, which occupies half of the Japanese market, has bet everything on full-hybrid and offers very few battery electric vehicles. There are no serious proposals from other Japanese carmakers either.
3. Third, Kei cars are also a significant component of car sales in Japan (nearly 40% of the market). These cars have small motorisations (670 cc displacement) et contained emissions.
4. Fourth, with the share of foreign imports remaining stable at 6% of the Japanese market for decades, there is very little opportunity for a foreign brand to market a battery electric car at a competitive price compared to a full-hybrid model and in large quantities. Remember that 1% of the Japanese market corresponds to approximately 40,000 cars, which no battery electric foreign model can reasonably achieve.
- The future growth of BEV sales in Japan will depend in part on the expansion of the offering of this type of model among Japanese carmakers. It should be noted that plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) are as little successful as BEVs, occupying only 2% of the Japanese market in 2024 (63,691 units).