Australia EV Sales — January 2026 Update, Spotlight on the BYD Atto 1

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In January 2026, over 12,000 Australian motorists joined the electric vehicle ecosystem. Out of 87,092 light vehicles sold, 7,409 were battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and 5,161 were plugin hybrids (PHEVs). That is a penetration rate of 16%. Not too shabby to start the year off. Remember that the penetration rate in December 2025 was 16.7%.

BYD Atto 1 is moving up the sales chart in January 2026. Photo courtesy of Majella Waterworth.

January 2026 showed a slight decline in penetration rate, a larger decline in overall numbers, but a year-on-year increase. In January 2025, only 4% of new cars sold were BEVs. I can take heart that we may see such an increase throughout 2026. If so, it will probably ride on the shoulders of the newly released “budget friendly” BYD Atto 1 & Atto 2 — see below. Despite incentives and lots of promotion, Tesla deliveries were down significantly.

The best-selling battery electric cars in January 2026 were:

BYD Sealion 7 — 1,171
BYD Atto 2 — 562
Zeekr 7X — 418
Geely EX5 — 415
BYD Seal — 295
Tesla Model Y — 288
Kia EV5 — 281
BYD Dolphin — 272
BYD Atto 1 — 245
BYD Atto 3 — 234
Omoda Jaecoo J5 — 215
Tesla Model 3 — 213
Toyota BZ4X — 182
Kia EV3 — 177
MG 4 — 159
ORA — 136
MG S5 — 132
VW ID.4 — 126
Polestar 4 — 101
Mercedes EQA — 86

Almost a clean sweep by BYD, with six models in the top 10! The Atto 2 was only launched in December and the Atto 1 (aka Seagull, Dolphin Surf, and Dolphin Mini) in January. I am expecting big things from these two. Fears that they might cannibalise sales of the Dolphin seem unfounded so far. You have to go down to number 7 to find a non-Chinese brand (apart from Tesla), with the Kia EV5 being first in that regard. And you have to go down to number 13 to find a Japanese brand (Toyota). The only European brands are the two Germans at the end of the top 20 — VW and Mercedes. As predicted in a recent CleanTechnica article, Western brands are losing the EV market.

Xpeng, Tesla, Hyundai, BYD, Zeekr. Photo taken at a recent EV coffee morning. Courtesy of Majella Waterworth.

Stats on January sales of PHEVs are harder to come by — but here are the figures for 2025 (full year results from the Royal Automobile Club of Victoria):

BYD Shark 6 — 18,073 (new model)
BYD Sealion 6 — 9,055 (+46.1%)
Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV — 4,110 (-32.9%)
GWM Haval H6 PHEV — 2,542 (new model)
GWM Cannon Alpha PHEV — 1,371 (new model)

Chinese brands are bringing in new PHEV models and showing stellar growth. The sole Japanese brand (Mitsubishi) is sinking rapidly. This is expected to continue into 2026. January saw a heavy BYD presence, with the Shark 6 achieving 1108 sales, the Sealion 6 reaching 706, the Sealion 8 scoring 247, and the Sealion 5 — 161. Pundits are pontificating that even though overall numbers of vehicles sold in the Australian market remain stable, the make-up is evolving.

“Petrol-powered vehicles recorded a 14 per cent decline in January, reinforcing a longer-term shift away from traditional internal combustion engines. In contrast, electrified vehicles continued to gain traction, led by a sharp increase in plug-in hybrid sales.”

With four of the top ten brands being Chinese, it is clear that Australian buyers are becoming more accepting of the value-focused electrified vehicles on offer.

January 2026 EVs at Bracken Ridge coffee morning. Photo courtesy Majella Waterworth.

James at EVDB puts all these numbers into graphs for those who prefer their information visually. See them here. The decline of petrol and diesel is obviously inevitable.

Spotlight on the Atto 1

The Atto 1 (aka Dolphin Mini, or Seagull) was recently released in Australia, and we took it for a brief test drive. You can read about it here. As I noted in the article, it is difficult to assess any electric vehicle in a 30-minute test drive around city streets. So, I was pleased when I opened the Atto 1 Facebook page this morning to find that multiple cars have been delivered and new owners are sharing their experiences. Joining a Facebook group is a great way to get unbiased information, to have questions answered, and without any sales pressure.

Dexter Pan started the sharing with his post after 3 days driving his premium white Atto 1:

“Great little car. Fast and very easy taking over at freeway.

“Map is somehow questionable as I have 2 locations out by at least 300m. My partner cannot open the car using the tap on the mirror despite the fact I gave her full access. It won’t charge with Tesla’s original charger but can be used with wall connector.

“Indicator is 1 second slower to react sometimes, which means you hit the turn left or right button, but it will only sound after about 1 sec delay after in some occasions.

“Sports mode is about 8% more consuming on battery but it gives better handling making the steering tad heavier. I tried 3 modes today with 40 mins driving on each.

“Sound quality is good considering the price. Car’s camera is somehow distorted when in parking mode (meaning the objects will lose its shape when it’s close)

“Full charge can do around 260km on sports mode and 290km on eco mode.

“Auto high beam at night is a surprisingly good feature I don’t know it had. It will automatically switch on and turns off with head on traffic at night and it’s very bright.”

Dexter clarifies that he was mainly driving at between 70 and 100 km on the highway.

A conversation under his post demonstrates how drivers educate drivers, answering questions about regen braking, use of chargers, and, of course, the technology side of things. There appears to be some concern about whether a data plan is included. There were a whole range of answers to this issue. This is similar to the issues BYD had when the Atto 3 was released four years ago. Every new EV seems to have technology teething issues.

January 2026 Majella takes the new kid on the block for a drive around the block. Photo courtesy of Majella Waterworth.

Members of the group shared experiences starting from seeing their car arrive by RORO ship in Western Australia, provoking a lament from the Northern Territory that there is no sign of their car yet. There was discussion about how the pet dog would travel in the back seat. And one long-term planner who was looking forward to second-hand process in a few years time. Those who prefer a real-world review on video might like to watch this:

It appears that the Atto 1 is shaking up the Aussie small car market as much as the Shark did to the utes. Again, it is the beginning of a new year — lots of potential and dreams. Who knows what the year will bring. A bright and electric future, I hope.

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