Toyota coy about Corolla sales targets

The carry-over champ currently sits fewer than 400 units behind the newer Mazda3, which launched earlier this year. At the mid-way point of the year, the Mazda holds 22,524 sales while the Corolla range, on a roll following the launch of the new sedan, has 22,166 deliveries.

But while the neck-and-neck tussle for bragging rights might enthral some, Toyota Australia’s Steve Coughlan says the company’s isn’t too worried either way.

“No, it’s not our goal to run volume,” Coughlan said. “It’s never been our target to be number one with the Corolla. Obviously we are very happy with the performance of the car and the way it has been received, that goes without saying."

Coughlan went on to say that he hopes that success continues. He also explained that being number one was never a high priority or a target for Toyota Australia from launch. 

“We never put an official number out there,” he said. “For a market like ours, sales are largely dependent on supply and that can vary based on any number of factors that are often out of our control.”

“Like any vehicle that is in hot demand, we work hard to get the right allocation,” he said. 

Toyota is now working on a split-supply model in Australia, with the hatch coming from Japan and the sedan sourced from Thailand.