Australians bought 107,493 new vehicles in October 2026, counting both the industry’s VFACTS figures and Tesla and Polestar deliveries. The Toyota HiLux was the best-selling model with 5,954 sales, ahead of the Ford Ranger on 4,841. Fully electric cars made up 23.1% of all sales.
Where the 107,493 comes from
Australia does not have a single official count of every new car sold. The total combines two reports, which use different methods.
Reporting body | October 2026 | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
FCAI VFACTS | 103,325 (up 3.8% on October 2025) | Brands that report to the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries |
Electric Vehicle Council | 4,168 (Tesla 4,050, Polestar 118) | Tesla and Polestar only, counted when cars are delivered |
Combined | 107,493 | Both reports added together |
The FCAI’s October release reported 103,325 sales. The Electric Vehicle Council’s report says Tesla and Polestar delivered 4,168 battery electric vehicles. The council notes that its report covers only those two brands and records sales “at the point of delivery”.
Drive reports that the combined figure is the best October result on record, ahead of 106,809 in October 2023. It is a record for the month of October, not an all-time monthly record.
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Toyota HiLux, the best-selling vehicle in October 2026.
Top 10 models
The FCAI lists these models as the October leaders in its VFACTS data.
The Tesla Model Y is not in the VFACTS table because Tesla reports separately. The Electric Vehicle Council says 3,105 Model Ys were delivered in October. That would place it fourth if both counts are combined, although the two reports measure sales slightly differently.
Top brands
The FCAI says Toyota led with 20,649 sales, followed by BYD (10,025), Ford (7,310), Kia (5,801), Mazda (5,730), MG (4,676), Hyundai (4,571), GWM (4,417), Geely (4,365) and Chery (4,317). Tesla’s 4,050 deliveries are reported separately.
Electric cars and the shift away from petrol
The FCAI says battery electric vehicles accounted for 23.1% of sales from all sources, almost three times their 7.3% share a year earlier. That figure is for fully electric cars only, not hybrids or plug-in hybrids.
Sales of petrol vehicles were down 35.9% on October 2025 and diesel sales were down 14.7%, according to the FCAI. China was the largest source of vehicles recorded in VFACTS, supplying 36.3%, ahead of Japan on 23.3% and Thailand on 17.9%.
How October compares
In September, the Ford Ranger was the top seller. The HiLux’s October win puts Toyota’s ute back on top for the month.