Japan in October 2012: Kei Cars Cushion Blow

12 years ago - 3 November 2012, The truth about cars

Japanese subsidies for eco-cars expired in September, and analysts predicted a hard landing due to pulled-forward sales. In a way, this happened, but the fall was not as hard as expected.

In September, sales on all automobiles in Japan were down 3.4 %. This month, they are down 5.7 %. The fall would have been harder, would it not have been cushioned by the resilience of a Japanese oddity, the Kei car.

Regular vehicle sales Japan October 2012

Manufacturer	Oct ’12	Oct ’11	YoY	YTD ’12	YTD ’11	YoY
Daihatsu	233	441	-47.2%	2,536	2,578	-1.6%
Hino	2,876	2,794	2.9%	34,917	27,724	25.9%
Honda	20,006	36,355	-45.0%	385,469	314,810	22.4%
Isuzu	3,621	2,937	23.3%	49,844	33,617	48.3%
Lexus	3,128	4,308	-27.4%	37,528	36,328	3.3%
Mazda	9,154	11,457	-20.1%	145,832	124,357	17.3%
Mitsubishi	5,376	4,063	32.3%	51,657	46,955	10.0%
Mitsubishi Fuso	2,555	2,931	-12.8%	29,124	21,289	36.8%
Nissan	34,753	33,631	3.3%	440,766	372,341	18.4%
Subaru	8,170	5,785	41.2%	84,891	62,118	36.7%
Suzuki	4,945	6,025	-17.9%	77,982	64,927	20.1%
Toyota	114,405	122,208	-6.4%	1,389,389	935,800	48.5%
UD Trucks	707	855	-17.3%	7,593	6,638	14.4%
Other	15,614	14,137	10.4%	194,343	165,396	17.5%
Total	225,543	247,927	-9.0%	2,931,871	2,214,878	32.4%

Data courtesy Japan Automobile Dealers Association

Sales of regular vehicles were down 9 % in Japan, with Honda taking the biggest hit of Japan’s big three. This according to the Japanese Automobile Dealer Organization JADA. You may read elsewhere that the Japanese car market is down by that number, but it is not. A full 37 % of Japanese auto sales do not show up in this statistic.

Mini vehicle sales Japan October 2012

Manufacturer	Oct ’12	Oct ’11	YoY	YTD ’12	YTD ’11	YoY
Suzuki	41,494	39,263	5.7%	504,300	392,994	28.3%
Daihatsu	44,372	52,148	-14.9%	585,797	445,466	31.5%
Mitsubishi	4,744	6,074	-21.9%	69,913	79,039	-11.5%
Subaru	2,610	6,493	-59.8%	63,535	66,967	-5.1%
Honda	23,885	10,306	131.8%	264,788	106,336	149.0%
Mazda	4,009	3,822	4.9%	45,545	38,606	18.0%
Nissan	9,769	13,225	-26.1%	133,560	119,063	12.2%
Toyota	2,903	1,845	57.3%	37,926	2,061	1740.2%
Other	4	8	-50.0%	41	37	10.8%
Total	133,790	133,184	0.5%	1,705,405	1,250,569	36.4%

Data courtesy Japan Automobile Dealers Association

Sales of that Japanese foible, the mini vehicle, or Kei car, actually were up slightly, 0.5 % to 133,790 units, the Japan Mini Vehicles Association says. The 0.6 liter midget mobiles have seen an amazing resurgence recently. 1.7 million Keis were sold in Japan through October. Sales in the segment were driven by Honda’s N-Box. In September, nearly 20,000 units changed hands. The car received support from the N-Box +, and today from the N-one, a retro-styled Kei that took its cute cues from the N360, the first mass-produced Honda Kei, which was introduced in 1967.

Total vehicle sales Japan October 2012

Manufacturer	Oct ’12	Oct ’11	YoY	YTD ’12	YTD ’11	YoY
Daihatsu	44,605	52,589	-15.2%	588,333	448,044	31.3%
Hino	2,876	2,794	2.9%	34,917	27,724	25.9%
Honda	43,891	46,661	-5.9%	650,257	421,146	54.4%
Isuzu	3,621	2,937	23.3%	49,844	33,617	48.3%
Lexus	3,128	4,308	-27.4%	37,528	36,328	3.3%
Mazda	13,163	15,279	-13.8%	191,377	162,963	17.4%
Mitsubishi	10,120	10,137	-0.2%	121,570	125,994	-3.5%
Mitsubishi Fuso	2,555	2,931	-12.8%	29,124	21,289	36.8%
Nissan	44,522	46,856	-5.0%	574,326	491,404	16.9%
Subaru	10,780	12,278	-12.2%	148,426	129,085	15.0%
Suzuki	46,439	45,288	2.5%	582,282	457,921	27.2%
Toyota	117,308	124,053	-5.4%	1,427,315	937,861	52.2%
UD Trucks	707	855	-17.3%	7,593	6,638	14.4%
Other	15,618	14,145	10.4%	194,384	165,433	17.5%
Total	359,333	381,111	-5.7%	4,637,276	3,465,447	33.8%

Consolidating regular cars with Keis, the big picture looks like this. The market is 5.9 % lower than in October 2011. Despite a little, and less than expected weakness in September and October, both Honda and Toyota have grown their sales by more than 40 % through October. Toyota’s group sales including Daihatsu and Hino are up 45.1 %.