Tesla may have encountered major challenges in its Q1 2024 electric vehicle deliveries, but it still continues to report strong performance in many countries, including Australia. According to the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) data, the popular Tesla Model Y crossover dominated the electric vehicle market in Australia in March 2024.
BEV sales in Australia – March 2024
FCAI’s data revealed that Australia sold 10,464 electric vehicles in March 2024. However, this figure excludes the 84 Polestar 2s sold the same month because the brand quit FCAI over emissions standards issues.
Therefore, if we count Polestar’s EV sales, the country’s total electric vehicle sales would be 10,548 units. They accounted for 9.5% of Australia’s new vehicle sales in March 2024, up from 6.8% YoY but slightly down from 9.6% MoM.
Tesla Model Y leads
As expected, Tesla’s all-electric SUV Model Y once again topped the BEV sales ranking in March 204. According to the data, the Model Y sold 4,379 units.
In the overall automotive market, the Tesla Model Y ranked third. It trailed behind the Ford Ranger ute and the Toyota Rav4. Impressively, the Tesla crossover beat the popular Hilux ute and the Mitsubishi Outlander.
Meanwhile, its electric sedan sibling, the Tesla Model 3, claimed the second spot with 1,638 unit sales. It followed a record month in February 2024 when its sales hit a total of 3,593 units.
These remarkable results in March 2024 enabled Tesla to become the 6th top-selling brand in the Australian automotive market, marking its highest rank to date.
Sales ranking
Presented below are the top 10 most popular electric vehicle models in Australia in March 2024:
Model | Sales | |
| 1 | Tesla Model Y | 4379 |
| 2 | Tesla Model 3 | 1638 |
| 3 | BYD Atto 3 | 1044 |
| 4 | BYD Seal | 365 |
| 5 | MG MG4 | 352 |
| 6 | BMW i4 | 236 |
| 7 | BYD Dolphin | 213 |
| 8 | Kia EV6 | 198 |
| 9 | Volvo XC40 Recharge | 135 |
| 10 | Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV | 124 |
Tesla quits FCAI like Polestar did
Tesla’s EV sales will also become unavailable from FCAI’s future reports after June 2024 because the Musk-led company also canceled its membership.
FCAI is allegedly misleading customers regarding potential price adjustments associated with the New Vehicle Efficiency Scheme (NVES), among other things. The American EV giant explained its opposition to FCAI in a formal letter in March.
“Tesla considers that the FCAI has repeatedly made claims that are demonstrably false. Tesla is concerned that the FCAI has engaged in behaviors that are likely to mislead or deceive Australian consumers. Tesla is also concerned that it is inappropriate for the FCAI to foreshadow or coordinate whether and how competitor brands implement price changes in response to environmental regulations such as the NVES.”
Tesla indicated in the letter
The unstoppable dominance of the Tesla Model Y only demonstrates the brand’s strong reputation in the electric vehicle market despite the weak Q1 2024 performance. It comes as no surprise because Chief Elon Musk already warned investors about the looming sales growth slowdown this year due to the company’s focus on developing its next-gen EV platform.
