Several “young” manufacturers are now well established in Europe, such as Tesla, which is still driving counters crazy. We also think about Chinese competition coming with (very) big ambitions to the Old Continent car market, such as BYD. The latter recently presented the Seagull at the Shanghai show, a small electric car that may arrive in French concessions less than… EUR 10,000 ! But in the meantime, Toyota imperceptibly rose to second place among European brands…

Toyota is slowly but surely imposing itself on the 2nd place!

With almost 766,769 models were soldand increased by 7.6%, the Japanese automaker beat all expectations in 2022. Last year Toyota even overtook Peugeot, while in 2021 the lion took the second position behind Volkswagen. One model brought the Japanese company to the top: small Yaris. Its new version, recognized as the car of the year 2021, almost equaled in terms of sales with the unsurpassed Golf, the queen of the Old Continent.

The problem is that Toyota is a hit in Europe, other Japanese brands are losing ground. Nissan, Mazda, Suzuki or Honda lags far behind European manufacturers. Mitsubishi was even on the verge of being withdrawn from production and now relies on barely modified models of its alliance partner Renault. But why does the first racket of the world manage to gain a foothold in Europe so easily?

Why is Toyota so successful in Europe?

If the Japanese manufacturer has become a hit, it is thanks to a series of good choices made by the group. First, his fully hybrid strategy paid off. If the European market has been very fond of diesel engines for decades, Toyota has simply ignored European customers’ desire for diesel engines for many years. The Japanese wisely focused on hybrids, a strategy that paid off in the end! After the diesel scandal, demand only increased, and over the past 5 years, sales have doubled.

During the crisis, which led to significant shortages in the automobile industry, the Japanese were also less affected by these unexpected consequences. Since the 2011 tsunami, Toyota has been betting on large inventories as well as maintaining a low share of suppliers of parts for its cars.

Finally, the Japanese giant has also made the right choice regarding its offering. Models that were not successful on the Old Continent, such as the Avensis and Camry sedans, were discontinued. Unlike a city SUV Yaris Cross, which was only launched in September 2021, quickly became a bestseller. With 136,602 sales last year, it even dethroned Renault Captur, which once held first place! The model, produced near Valenciennes, even recently became the car produced the most in France 161,508 unitsahead of the Peugeot 3008 (159,166).

Finally, while other brands are exiting the micro-city segment, Toyota is persistently continuing and staying in the uninhabited segment. with AygoX, the Japanese offer a boulevard previously borrowed by Peugeot and Citroën, for example, from the 108 or C1. Also, 77,345 new Aygos with high legs were sold in 2022!