Feb 2025 Car Sales Up 24.8%, xEVs Surge 33.8%

The government's transparency data dashboard, data.gov.my, released the vehicle sales/registration data for the month of Feb 2025. Based on the data published, a total of 67,327 vehicles were registered in Malaysia, marking an increase of 24.8% from the 53,930 vehicles registered in Jan.

Petrol vehicles remained the most dominant category, experiencing a surge from 47,093 in Jan to 59,868 in Feb, an increase of 27.1%. Diesel vehicle registrations, including green diesel, showed a modest growth of 10% from 2,897 in Jan to 3,187 in Feb.

Meanwhile, hybrid petrol vehicles experienced a slight decline of 6.1%, dropping from 2,249 in Jan to 2,112 in Feb. Electric vehicles demonstrated a promising increase of 27.7%, growing from 1,691 to 2,160 registrations over the two months.

The petrol segment was led by Perodua Bezza, which saw an outstanding jump in sales from 5,106 in Jan to 9,712 in Feb, a 90.2% increase. Myvi followed closely behind with 7,126 units sold in Feb, an increase of 59.6% compared to the previous month.

Axia remained steady at 7,096 units in both months, while Proton Saga and Perodua Alza saw moderate growth, adding 551 (12.4%) and 587 (18.3%) more units in Feb, respectively.

Diesel vehicles saw Toyota Hilux leading the segment with 1,677 registrations in Feb, an increase of 29.6% compared to Jan. Isuzu D-Max and Mitsubishi Triton remained among the top choices, with sales figures of 488 and 279 units, respectively. However, Ford Ranger experienced a notable decline of 36.5%, dropping from 364 units in Jan to 231 in Feb.

Electric vehicle registrations reflected a growing interest in alternative fuel options, with Proton e.MAS 7 leading the market at 580 units in Feb, an increase of 37.8% from Jan. The BYD Sealion followed with 387 units, a substantial increase of 156.3% from 151 in the previous month.

Tesla Model 3 entered the market strongly in Feb with 377 units, making an immediate impact. However, some models like the BYD M6 and Xpeng G6 experienced slight declines of 11.8% and 8.6%, respectively.

Hybrid petrol vehicle sales remained steady, with the Toyota Corolla Cross retaining its position as the best-selling model, recording 655 units in both months. Honda CR-V and HR-V both showed positive growth, increasing their sales by 19.7% and 31%, respectively.

In contrast, the Haval H6 experienced a sharp decline of 43.6% from 344 to 194 units, while the Nissan Kicks also dropped by 23.1%.

Looking ahead, petrol cars are still the go-to choice for most buyers, but EVs and hybrids are clearly gaining ground. Diesel remains steady, though its share of the market isn’t expanding much. The upcoming end of the EV tax exemption could cause a short-term rush in sales, especially if new hybrid incentives are introduced.

That said, things get murkier beyond 2025. While CKD EV incentives run until 2027, manufacturers are hesitant to invest in local assembly without clearer long-term policies. The current short-term CKD tax exemption doesn’t offer enough certainty for big investments.

Another factor to watch is the potential introduction of Open Market Value (OMV) excise duty next year, which could drive CKD vehicle prices up by 10-30%. This would shrink the price gap between locally assembled (CKD) and fully imported (CBU) models, making CKD less attractive.

With all these changes on the horizon, 2025 is shaping up to be a defining year for Malaysia’s car market, setting the stage for what comes next in petrol, hybrid, and EV adoption.