American automotive media spend a lot of time and words talking about the Ford F-150’s sales dominance, but globally, it’s Tesla that has taken the top spot. The American EV maker had the most-produced vehicle in the world last year, topping Ford trucks and an uber-popular Toyota along the way.
French EV research firm Inovev recently released a comprehensive study of 2023's vehicle production and registrations and found that the Tesla Model Y overtook the Toyota RAV4 and Ford’s F-Series trucks as the most-produced vehicle of 2023. Ten of the top 25 models on the list include:
- Tesla Model Y: 1,137,885 units
- Toyota RAV4: 989,517
- Ford F-Series: 933,198
- Toyota Corolla: 869,228
- Honda CR-V: 679,832
- Ram Trucks: 651,581
- Toyota Hilux: 646,975
- Toyota Camry: 645,915
- BYD Song: 645,264
- Tesla Model 3: 636,519
The Chevy Silverado and Toyota Corolla Cross weren’t far off the Model 3’s production numbers. BYD, which landed one model in the top 10, had four models in the top 25: the Song, Qin, Yuan and Dolphin. Toyota had five models in the top 25, while Honda had four. The Americans and Koreans each landed two, while the German brands earned four spots.
While these production numbers are impressive, it’s important to note that they are not sales numbers. The Tesla Model Y also won there, with around 1.23 million units sold last year. These numbers also don’t cover automakers' full-line sales or production numbers. Chinese company BYD said it built more than 3 million vehicles last year, far outpacing Tesla’s 1.84 million cars. BYD’s vehicles are far less expensive than Tesla’s and don’t currently sell in the U.S., so a firm comparison is difficult to make.
BYD makes hybrids and other non-EVs, but even when slimming the view down to just electric models, the company holds a commanding presence in its home market. Inovev found that BYD’s 25 percent market share dwarfs Tesla’s 15 percent in China. Even so, that Tesla landed the Model Y in the top global production spot and the Model 3 at number ten is impressive enough.
