Plug-in hybrid (PHEV) sales continue to grow in Australia, outpacing the growth shown by hybrid and battery-electric vehicles.

    A total of 13,698 PHEVs were delivered in the first quarter of 2025, up significantly from the 3426 delivered in the first quarter of 2024.

    If you include extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) versions of the Leapmotor C10 – Australia’s only EREV, for now – and that rose to 13,711 vehicles, or a 300.2 per cent increase on the same period last year.

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    A very different Chinese vehicle, the BYD Shark 6, was Australia’s best-selling PHEV in the first quarter of 2025.

    BYD sold almost twice as many examples of its ute than the next best-selling PHEV, the Mitsubishi Outlander, as buyers rushed to take advantage of the Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) exemption for PHEVs which expired on April 1.

    The Shark 6 also was without any direct competition, though that’ll change imminently with the arrival of PHEV versions of the Ford Ranger and GWM Cannon Alpha.

    Strong sales of the Shark 6 and Sealion 6 PHEVs helped offset drops for BYD’s electric models.

    BYD was Australia’s biggest seller of PHEVs, delivering more than twice as many as second-place Mitsubishi and accounting for 50 per cent of the total PHEV market.

    Mitsubishi in turn delivered more than twice as many PHEVs as Mazda, despite the latter now having a second PHEV model – the CX-80 – to offer.

    GWM jumped up to fourth place with the launch of its first PHEV in Australia, the Haval H6 GT, while Kia took fifth spot.

    Notably, Kia was also a top-five seller of EVs in the same period, though the brand sold more than five times as many EVs as PHEVs.

    MORE: Australia’s best-selling EVs in 2025 so far: Tesla still on top despite slump
    MORE: Australia’s best-selling PHEVs in 2024 revealed

    William Stopford

    William Stopford is an automotive journalist based in Brisbane, Australia. William is a Business/Journalism graduate from the Queensland University of Technology who loves to travel, briefly lived in the US, and has a particular interest in the American car industry.

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