In August 2022, Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, made a prediction that seemed totally far-fetched: the Model Y will be the world’s highest-grossing car by 2022 and the world’s best-selling car overall by 2023. Others, Like the arrival of total autonomous driving, no, but this is indeed being fulfilled.
He Tesla Model Y had excellent market performance in 2022, being the third best selling car in the world. This is revealed by the most recent ranking with the 500 models with the best commercialization in the course of the last year. The electric crossover SUV made a brutal jump in the list, since in the 2021 edition it had occupied the 19th position.
The report Prepared by the analyst Felipe Muñoz indicates that Tesla sold 747,500 Model Y units in 2022. This represented an increase in 91% compared to the previous year, as well as its ratification as the most successful electric car globally.
In the first two places in the ranking of best-selling cars in 2022, there were no surprises. The Toyota RAV4 -also known as Wildlander in China- was once again at the top with 1,015,700 units sold. Although this represented a drop of 10% compared to the previous year. While the Toyota Corolla was second with 991,600 units, also suffering a drop of 10% year-on-year.
It is worth mentioning that the Model Y It wasn’t the only Tesla car in the top 10 of the list of cars with the greatest commercialization in the world. The Model 3 was present in tenth place with 482,200 units sold, 3% less than in 2021, when it had been ninth.
This fulfills Musk’s first prediction. Toyota ranked first and second in the world’s best-selling cars, but its vehicles have minimal profit margins. Instead, with 747,500 units sold, the Tesla Model Y It is definitely the most profitable vehicle in the world during 2022.
A milestone that in 2020, even in 2021, it sounded absolutely crazy. Toyota seemed like an impossible sell, but even with the highest prices the vehicle has ever experienced, it managed to rank third in global vehicle sales.
The Tesla Model Y was the best-selling electric car in the world in 2022
The brutal growth of the Tesla Model Y in global car sales in 2022 is also notable in the international context. The report indicates that the sale of new vehicles during the last year was 2% less than that of 2021, reaching 79.4 million units.
Supply chain issues fueled by chip shortages, coupled with the war in Ukraine, were crucial factors in the performance of the auto market in 2022. Something that had a great impact in North America —the United States and Canada, specifically— and Europe. In China, meanwhile, sales also stagnated; something logical if we also consider the effects of the sanitary restrictions due to COVID-19 that were maintained until the end of last year.
If we go back to Tesla, it is not surprising that the Model Y is in the top 3 best-selling cars worldwide. In 2022, Elon Musk’s produced 1,369,611 electric vehicles, of which 1,313,851 were delivered to buyers.
Of the total units manufactured, 1,298,434 corresponded to the Model 3 and the Model Ywhile the remaining 71,177 were from Model S and Model X. In terms of deliveries, on the other hand, 1,247,146 were from the Model 3 and Model Yand 66,705 of the Model S and Model X.
A 2023 of great expectations
The expectations around the Tesla Model Y for 2023 are even more interesting. Let us remember that this model was benefited -along with the Model 3- by a sharp drop in its price in the first days of the year. While, last April, those of Elon Musk again reduced the price of some versions of both models in Spain. Benefits that can also be complemented with government aid from the MOVES Plan. Furthermore, in Spain, the vehicle is offered with particularly attractive financing.
In fact, the start of the new year has been really interesting for Tesla, which once again broke quarterly delivery records. Between January and March it produced 440,808 units of its electric cars, of which 421,371 corresponded to the Model 3 and Model Y. While of the total of 422,875 deliveries, 412,180 corresponded to the aforementioned models.
If Tesla’s sales figures, especially the Model Y, continue this trend, it is very likely that the vehicle will end up in second and even first place in the ranking of the best sellers of 2023. Thus fulfilling Elon Musk’s second prediction.
The 10 best-selling cars in the world in 2022
Position | Brand and model | Number of units sold |
1 | Toyota RAV4/Wildlander | 1,015,700 (-10% vs. 2021) |
2 | Toyota Corolla/Corolla Levin | 991,600 (-10%) |
3 | Tesla Model Y | 747,500 (+91%) |
4 | Honda CR-V/Breeze | 733,300 (-18%) |
5 | toyota camry | 673,300 (-1%) |
6 | toyota hilux | 632,500 (+13%) |
7 | Nissan Sentra/Sylphy | 566,500 (-18%) |
8 | Toyota Corolla Cross/Frontlander | 530,300 (+221%) |
9 | Ford F-150 | 525,100 (-5%) |
10 | Tesla Model 3 | 482,200 (-3%) |