Aqua leads as used imports have their busiest month of the year
Words: Richard Edwards
The Toyota Aqua was again New Zealand’s most popular used import in October, with 900 registrations, up from 773 a year ago.
Used passenger imports rose 18.4% on October last year to 8285. That’s the highest monthly figure of 2026 so far and the best October since 2023. Including commercials, 8726 used imports were registered, up 18.3%.
Top used passenger imports
- Toyota Aqua: 900
- Toyota Prius: 518
- Nissan Note: 465
- Toyota Corolla: 461
- Nissan Leaf: 262
- Nissan Serena: 254
- Toyota C-HR: 239
- Subaru Impreza: 214
- Honda Fit: 208
- Mazda Axela: 208
The Note moved up to third, from 320 last October to 465. The Leaf jumped from 110 to 262 to break into the top five. The Serena was up from 188 to 254.
Just outside the top 10 were the Subaru XV (184), Mazda Demio (182), Mazda CX-5 (180), Honda Vezel (179) and Nissan X-Trail (176). The Vezel was up from 121.
Thinking of buying one? Our used Toyota Aqua ReView covers what to look for.
Top brands (used passenger)
- Toyota: 3249
- Nissan: 1369
- Mazda: 892
- Subaru: 704
- Honda: 668
Toyota took 39.2% of the used passenger market, up 21% on last October. Nissan rose 39% and moved ahead of Mazda, which fell 11%. Lexus nearly doubled, from 103 to 201.
More than half are hybrids
Petrol hybrids made up 53.8% of used passenger imports, with 4461 registrations, up 29% on last October. Straight petrol models held steady on 3181.
Used EV imports rose 150% to 398. The Leaf made up 262 of them. Tesla registered 68 used imports, up from 19, with 34 Model Ys and 30 Model 3s. BYD added 17, nine of them Atto 3s. Used plug-in hybrids rose 56% to 100, led by Mitsubishi on 60.
Where they come from
Japan supplied 89.5% of used passenger imports, with 7419, up 21%. Germany was next on 501, down 17.5%, followed by the UK (105). China-built used imports rose from 19 to 76.
Vans and utes
Used commercial imports rose 16.4% to 441. The Toyota Hiace nearly doubled to 198, up from 102, and made up almost half the segment. Next were the Ford Transit (25) and Nissan NV200 (21).
Year to date
Used passenger imports for the year so far are 76,774, up 7.5% on the same period last year. Used EV imports total 3318, up 136%.
Rental operators registered 285 used imports in October, up from 161. The most common were the Aqua (46), Hiace (45) and Note (43).
For October’s new vehicle registrations, see RAV4 back on top as October new car registrations climb 10%.
Registration figures are from NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) motor vehicle registration data. They count vehicles registered in New Zealand for the first time in the month. “New” means vehicles never registered anywhere before; “used” means used imports registered here for the first time. NZTA sometimes corrects its records after a month closes, so figures may differ slightly from those published earlier. Rental figures are vehicles NZTA records as rental use. EVs are battery-electric vehicles. PHEVs are plug-in hybrids, including range-extender EVs. Hybrids that can’t be plugged in aren’t counted in either.
