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Toyota Sales Report Shows Strong COVID Recovery

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2021 Toyota Sienna Limited AWD Cypress Green
2021 Toyota Sienna Limited AWD in Cypress Green
Photo: Toyota

Toyota Motor North America has reported its sales figures for the first half of 2021, and as anticipated, they are looking quite good compared to the same period last year when the COVID-19 pandemic forced manufacturers to shut down operations and experience record-low production.

So when Toyota says it sold about 45 percent more vehicles in the first six months of 2021 than in the first six months of 2020, that shouldn’t come across as anything altogether impressive. What is impressive is that with 1,291,879 vehicles sold in the United States, the Japanese automaker was up by more than a million vehicle sales compared to the same period in both 2019 and 2018. In other words, Toyota hasn’t just recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic — it’s doing even better than it was before the shutdown.


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In fact, the automaker reported best-ever light truck sales for the first half of the year as well as best-ever June sales overall. Many individual models shared one or both of those distinctions, including the RAV4, Highlander, and 4Runner, along with a few Lexus models. The common theme is, as always, that SUVs are crushing it. That said, Toyota can’t be mad about selling more than 25,000 units of both the Camry and the Corolla. Other than Honda, no one else in the United States is doing anywhere near as well on the sedan front.

“Record June light truck sales, led by RAV4 and Highlander, solidified Toyota as the No. 1 selling retail brand through the first half of this year,” said Andrew Gilleland, vice president of Sales Operations, Toyota division. “Strong consumer demand on Toyota Camry, the excitement of the all-new 2019 Toyota Avalon and Corolla Hatchback, paired with excellent light truck availability sets us up for continued strong sales throughout the summer.”


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