Toyota HiLux overtakes Ford Ranger as Australia’s best-selling ute

A huge August slump for the Ford Ranger has handed the Toyota HiLux a surprise victory in the 4x4 ute sales race, with almost 2000 sales separating the two. The Ranger has been the best-selling vehicle in Australia for the past three years running but is its run about to wrested back by HiLux?

The Toyota HiLux has snatched the crown from the Ford Ranger in Australia’s 4x4 ute sales race, outselling its arch-rival 4282 to 2271 in August.

That’s a massive 2011-unit swing in a single month, after HiLux 4x4 sales rose 8.2 per cent from July while Ranger sales plunged 52 per cent.

While the HiLux does have the benefit of being the newer ute, with Toyota’s new-generation model only recently hitting Australian roads while the current Ranger has been on sale since 2022, there's another significant caveat to Ford’s result.

The company confirmed the Ranger’s August sales were hit by a temporary delivery and demonstration hold on some Double Cab variants as part of an airbag recall affecting almost 14,000 Rangers built between November 2025 and July 2026.

The recall is also another blemish on Ford's recent quality record in Australia. The Ranger campaign is reportedly Ford Australia's 21st recall this year, and the fifth to affect the Ranger.

Ford expects deliveries to improve as recalled vehicles are repaired and new stock arrives.

The broader 4x4 ute market wasn't exactly booming either, with the segment falling 27.1 per cent year-on-year in August, suggesting the Ranger's decline was much more dramatic than the market's overall movement.

And it's not just the Ranger that's having a tough run at Ford. The Everest recorded 1660 sales in August, down 24.6 per cent on the same month last year, while its year-to-date sales are down 14.4 per cent at 14,490 vehicles.

Importantly, though, the Everest's decline appears to be a separate story from the Ranger's recall-related sales disruption.

Ford's delivery hold specifically applied to affected Ranger Double Cab vehicles, while the Everest's August result reflects a broader decline in sales. It’s possible some buyers are waiting for more details on the resurrected Mitsubishi Pajero.

Toyota's Prado, meanwhile, continued to gain ground on the Everest, recording 2475 sales in August – up 21.7 per cent year-on-year – compared with the Ford's 1660.

Elsewhere in the ute market, the BYD Shark 6 continued to buck the broader decline, with 1385 sales in August, up 9.8 per cent on the same month last year.

The Isuzu D-Max was down 26.2 per cent to 1708 sales, while the Mitsubishi Triton fell 23.8 per cent to 1161.

Overall, the Ranger still holds the 2026 lead at 32,796 sales, but the gap to the Hilux has narrowed considerably, with Toyota sitting on 32,161.

That's just 635 vehicles separating Australia's two long-running ute rivals with four months of the year still to go.

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