Tesla Model 3 outsells Toyota Camry

An electric vehicle has topped the medium car sales charts for the first time – something that appears to have caught Toyota off guard.

The Tesla Model 3 put in a late sales surge to overtake the once-dominant Toyota Camry for mid-size passenger car sales supremacy in the Australian market.

The surprise result for a car costing double the price of the value-focused Toyota prompted the market-leading brand to adjust a press release it issued early on January 5, initially claiming that the Camry was the top-selling medium car for the 29th consecutive year.

Within hours Toyota had changed the press release to state that the Camry was merely the top-selling medium car priced under $60,000 – effectively acknowledging it had been knocked from the medium car top spot for the first time in decades.

The Camry nameplate first went on sale in Australia in 1983 as an imported model before being built locally, something that made it a popular fleet and government choice. It was always a popular mid-size back-up to the Ford Falcon and Holden Commodore that dominated large car sales.

But the long-running Camry record has finally come to an end.

Tesla reported 1806 Model 3s as being sold in December, taking the annual total for the five-seater to 10,877.

In comparison, Toyota managed just 333 Camrys in the last month of 2022, taking the Toyota stalwart to 9538 for the year, about one-third of what it once sold.

The Camry’s decline is due in part to the major shifts in the car market, which has seen many buyers trade traditional body styles such as sedans, wagons and hatchbacks for the higher ride height and bolder looks of an SUV.

Many Camry competitors – including the Ford Mondeo and Subaru Liberty – have disappeared and sales of others have dived.

But the Tesla has gone against the trend, reinvigorating interest in the sedan segment and prompting rivals to create EV alternatives, including the soon-to-arrive Hyundai IONIQ 6 and just-revealed Volkswagen ID.7.

But in some ways the Camry versus Model 3 tussle is a battle between hybrid and battery-electric technology.

More than two-thirds of Camrys sold are petrol-electric hybrids, which use around half the fuel of the regular models.

Demand for hybrids – which this year accounted for 81,786 sales, or 7.6 per cent of the market – has been growing strongly as buyers look to reduce running costs.

But over the past 12 months demand for EVs has grown more.

Toyota argues hybrid tech is an important stepping stone to carbon-neutral automotive solutions, playing an important role in helping reduce CO2.

But buyers, it seems, are shifting their dollars increasingly to the EV side of the equation – and paying for the privilege.

The most affordable Camry sells from $30,990 plus on-road costs, or $33,490 plus ORCs as a hybrid. The most affordable Tesla Model 3 starts at $65,500 plus ORCs.

When contacted, Toyota said it was not in a position to comment on the result.