Thailand’s car sales and production both increased slightly in May 2025. This is the second consecutive month showing an improvement in auto sales, following years of continuous decline. On the other hand, this is the first time in 21 months that auto production has increased.
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May auto sales in Thailand are up by 4.7 per cent year-on-year with 52,229 new vehicles sold. Cumulative sales from January to May amounted to 252,615 units, 3.4 per cent down compared to the same period last year.
Conversely, exports have dropped 9.2 year-on-year, amounting to 81,071 units. Shipments to Europe and the US have declined due to stricter driver assistance standards but have increased in Australia and the Middle East.
By category, 21,935 passenger vehicles were sold overall in May while commercial vehicle sales reached 30,294 units sold. Commercial vehicle sales declined by 2.9 per cent year-on-year, while passenger vehicle sales grew by 17.4 per cent compared to May last year.
Pick-up truck sales reached a cumulative 62,647 units sold so far in the year. This figure is 17 per cent lower than last year’s sales. Passenger pick-up trucks make up 15,365 of May’s pick-up truck sales, 7 per cent down from last year. Sales of 1-ton pick-up trucks amounted to only 14,333 units sold for the month of May, 18.8 per cent lower than last year.
Battery electric vehicles (BEV) took the lead in driving car sales, with a cumulative sales figure of 53,995. BEV sales are also up by 23 per cent compared to January – May of last year. Meanwhile, 55,374 hybrid vehicles were sold in the same period, 6 per cent down compared to the same period last year. Lastly, passenger vehicles with internal combustion engines sold 62,553 in total for January – May, 11 per cent down from last year. Lastly, SUV sales for the month of May alone amounted to 13,625 units sold, 23.9 per cent up year-on-year.
BRAND PERFORMANCE
Toyota, including Lexus, topped new car sales in Thailand with 19,201 units sold and 36.8 per cent market share acquired. The auto giant faced a slight decline in sales year-on-year, only by 1.6 per cent. Toyota’s Hilux, Yaris ATIV, Yaris Cross, and Fortuner appear in the kingdom’s top 10 best-selling models for May 2025. The Hilux took the lead at 1st place, the Yaris ATIV at 2nd place, Yaris Cross at 4th place, and the Fortuner at 9th place.
Following Toyota with a large gap is Isuzu, which sold 5,976 new cars, driven largely by its D-Max variant. The D-Max sold 4,465 units and placed 3rd in the top 10. Isuzu gained 11.4 per cent of the market share, but sales declined 24.2 per cent compared to last year.
Honda follows Toyota closely behind with 5,481 units sold and 10.5 per cent market share acquired. However, they also face a decline in sales of 16 per cent. Honda’s best-selling models were its City and HR-V variants which sold 2,747 and 2,117 units respectively, placing them at 5th and 6th place.
Chinese manufacturers BYD and Great Wall Motor (GWM) both increased significantly. BYD sold 4,339 units, down two places from 2nd to 4th from April to May. The EV maker acquired 5.6 market share while improving sales by 121.6 per cent year-on-year. Three of its models, the Dolphin, Sealion 6, and Sealion 7 appear in the top 10 best-sellers for May at 7th, 8th, and 10th place respectively.
On the other hand, GWM placed 6th in the top 10 with 1,731 new cars sold and 1.1 per cent market share acquired. GWM improved significantly, by 225.4 per cent—selling only 532 units in May last year. None of its models appeared in the top 10 best-selling vehicles for May 2025.
Morris Garages (MG) also improved notably, selling 2,217 new units and acquiring 2.7 market share. Its improvement was marked by a 65.1 per cent increase in sales year-on-year.
According to industry experts, the slight improvement in vehicle sales is due to lower vehicle prices, but the market is still at the mercy of tight auto loan approvals. Household debt, rising living costs, the Thai-Cambodia border dispute, and sluggish tourism also exacerbate the situation.
Alternatively, vehicle production output in Thailand increases by 10.32 per cent, with 139,186 units produced. This significant increase is the first in 21 months of continuous decline. The improvement has been attributed to a 641.16 per cent jump in BEV production.
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