BYD sold 3,870 vehicles in Japan in 2025.

In 2025, the sales volume of imported cars in Japan (excluding those from Japanese manufacturers) increased by 7% year-on-year, reaching 243,129 units. Among them, the sales volume of electric vehicles (EVs) increased by 26%, reaching 30,513 units, setting a new historical high. BYD's sales volume in Japan increased by 62%...

Data released by the Japan Automobile Importers Association (JAIA) on January 8th showed that in 2025, the sales volume of imported cars (excluding those from Japanese manufacturers) increased by 7% year-on-year, reaching 243,129 units. This was the first positive growth in two years. Among them, the sales volume of pure electric vehicles (EVs) increased by 26%, reaching 30,513 units, setting a new historical record. The increase in the sales volume of pure electric vehicle manufacturers such as Tesla from the United States pushed up the overall level.

The sales volume of EVs in Japan has been increasing for seven consecutive years. In 2025, the proportion of EVs in the overall sales volume was 13%, an increase of 2 percentage points compared with the previous year. Tesla from the United States did not announce its sales volume in Japan, but the sales volume of the "others" category, in which the company accounts for the majority, increased by 88%, reaching 10,693 units. This means that Tesla's sales volume in Japan exceeded 10,000 units for the first time, and its brand ranking rose from 10th in the previous year to 7th.

BYD's sales volume in Japan increased by 62%, reaching 3,870 units. The SUV "Sea Lion 7", which was launched in April 2025, continued to sell well, significantly boosting the sales volume. In the summer of 2026, BYD will launch the light pure electric vehicle "Racco" in the Japanese market, aiming to further expand its market share.

BYD "Sea Lion 7"

The sales volume of Hyundai Motor from South Korea increased by 89%, reaching 1,169 units. The small pure electric vehicle "INSTER", which was launched in April 2025, sold strongly. This model can easily drive on Japan's narrow roads and has a relatively low price among imported pure electric vehicles, which are welcomed by consumers. In 2025, pure electric vehicles set a new historical high in sales volume in Japan.

Looking at the overall sales volume of imported cars by brand, Mercedes - Benz from Germany decreased by 4%, falling to 50,857 units, and has ranked first for 11 consecutive years since 2015. In second place was BMW from Germany, with 35,729 units (a 1% increase), and in third place was Volkswagen from Germany, with 31,031 units (a 36% increase).

Tesla "Model Y"

In terms of the price range of passenger cars, the sales volume of cars priced at over 10 million yen (approximately 446,000 yuan) increased by 3%, reaching 40,602 units; the sales volume of cars priced between 4 million yen (approximately 178,000 yuan) and 10 million yen increased by 9%, reaching 151,273 units; and the sales volume of cars priced below 4 million yen increased by 7%, reaching 42,789 units.

In December 2025, the sales volume of imported cars in Japan increased by 0.3% year-on-year, reaching 23,551 units, while the sales volume of pure electric vehicles decreased by 14%, falling to 2,549 units. The Japanese government increased the upper limit of the subsidy for purchasing pure electric vehicles by 400,000 yen starting from January 1st, 2026, with the maximum subsidy reaching 1.3 million yen (approximately 58,000 yuan). The adjustment of the subsidy amount led consumers to postpone their purchases, affecting the sales volume.

This article is from the WeChat official account "Nikkei Chinese Net" (ID: rijingzhongwenwang). The author is Nikkei Chinese Net. It is published by 36Kr with authorization.