2016 Australian Motorcycles Sales Figures | By Brand

2016 Australian Motorcycles Sales Figures – Results by brand

Australian retail motorcycle sales data examined by brand across segments of road, on-road, scooter and ATV

Australia’s motorcycle, ATV and scooter sales reached a total of 114,783 in 2016. That figures amounted to an increase of 7,073 units over 2015, and is underlined as the fifth highest sales result in the industry’s history. It was also the industry’s strongest sales result since 2009.

2016 Australian overall sales by brand
Manufacturer – 2016 sales – 2015 sales – % change

1. Honda – 26,276 – 24,535 +7.1%
2. Yamaha – 24,899 – 23,290 +6.9%
3. Kawasaki – 10,592 – 10,675 -0.8%
4. Harley Davidson – 10,282 – 9,794 +5.0%
5. Suzuki – 9,924 – 9,806 +1.2%
6. KTM – 8,679 – 6,734 +28.9%
7. Polaris – 6,037 – 5,095 +18.5%
8. BMW – 3,301 – 3,258 +1.3%
9. Triumph – 3,125 – 2,900 +7.8%
10. BRP Australia – 2,524 – 1,901 +32.8%
11. Husqvarna – 2,168 – 1,560 +39.0%
12. Ducati – 2,013 – 2,194 -8.2%
13. Piaggio – 1,075 – 1,011 +6.3%
14. Vespa – 977 – 1,044 -6.4%
15. Aprilia – 648 – 845 -23.3%
16. Indian – 640 – 734 -12.8%
17. Victory – 274 – 381 -28.1%
18. Moto Guzzi – 215 – 259 -17.0%
19. Hyosung – 165 – 443 -62.8%
20. VMoto – 78 – 110 -29.1%

Honda #1

Honda was the largest selling brand again, holding 22.9 per cent (26,276 units) of the total motorcycle, ATV and scooter market which represents growth of 7.1 per cent over 2015, with the strongest growth in the road motorcycle segment.

Honda’s NBC110 (2,558), as used by Australia Post, was Australia’s #1 selling motorcycle over Honda’s CRF50F (2,400) in the number two position, with the Honda CRF110F (1,483) also the ninth highest selling overall motorcycle.

Honda was also a top performer in the LAMS segment, where the successful top-placing NBC110 was joined by the CBR500R (1,275) which boasted 4.9 per cent growth from 2015, the Grom (1,162) and CB125E (903), which held the seventh, eighth and ninth spots respectively.

Other Honda road model sales of note included the new CRF1000 Africa Twin which dominated the Adventure Touring segment with 740 sales, with the previously mentioned CBR500R taking top Super Sport position, followed by the CBR300R with 611 units sold, with the CBR500R seeing 4.9 per cent growth, while the CBR300R dropped by 41.5 per cent over 2015 sales.

The Honda CBR1000RR also featured in the top 10 Super Sport models at number 6, with 242 sales, a figure no doubt down due to the announcement of a new Fireblade in 2017.

Honda’s off-road sales, despite dropping by 4.6 per cent in 2016 were also still the second highest at 9,848.  Honda’s CRF50F took the outright Off Road top selling spot with 2400 units, a 2.4 per cent increase over 2015, with the Honda CRF110F sitting at number five (1,483) and the CRF230F number eight (1,185) with both seeing strong growth of 7.4 per cent and 4.5 per cent respectively.

The Honda CRF250L was also a strong contender in the Trail category at number three with 820 sales, down 12.8 per cent on the 2015 figure of 940 models sold.

Honda’s ATV sales were also dominant, included five of the top 10 selling ATVs, with the TRX250TM in the overall lead with 1050 sales, followed by the TRX500FM (923). Honda’s TRX420 line also held the sixth (789), ninth (551) and 10th (470) positions respectively with the FM, TM and FA models.

Honda also featured heavily in the top five selling scooters for 2016, with the WW150 (305), NSC110 (289) and MW110 (266) which were second, third and fifth respectively. The Honda MW110 also saw a 70.5 per cent increase in sales compared to the 2015 figure of 156.

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Yamaha #2

Close behind in second place was Yamaha with 21.7 per cent of the total market (24,899). Yamaha was the leading manufacturer in Off Road sales with 12,090 models sold.

Yamaha’s top selling machines were the PW50 (1,960) and TT-R50E (1930) while the WR450F continued its fantastic year as the sixth best selling machine overall across all segments, with 1,653 sold, closely followed by the YZF-R3A at 1,522 units.

Both the WR450F and YZF-R3A saw incredible growth over 2015, with 39.5 per cent and 31.7 per cent growth respectively, and were joined by the MT-07L (1,382) in the LAMS category, holding third, fourth and fifth positions. The WR450F was also the highest selling Enduro machine of 2016 with a 39.5 per cent increase in sales.

The MT-07L topped the Naked category for 2016, with the MT-09 the fourth highest performer at 692 sold, despite a 15.8 per cent decrease in sales from 2015. The LAMS legal MT-03LA also made an appearance in the Naked top 10 in fifth with 622 sold. The MT-09 sees a heavily updated version available in 2017.

The Yamaha YZF-R1 also made an appearance in the Super Sport category at number five, despite a decrease in sales by 52.6 per cent over 2015. The FJR1300 also featured at number five in the Touring category with 149 sold and 11.2 per cent growth over 2015.

Yamaha’s ATV models also had strong representation in the top 10 sales figures, with the YFM90R (820), YFM450FA/P (820) and YFM350 (639) placed fourth, fifth and eighth. The YFM90R also saw 67.3 per cent stronger sales over the 2015 figures.

Yamaha’s YW125 scooter also nabbed 10th place in scooter sales, with 176 sold, down 9.7 per cent or 19 units on 2015.

Kawasaki #3

Kawasaki was third with 9.2 per cent (10,592 sales) of overall sales. Kawasaki were the only manufacturer in the top ten to record no sales growth in 2016, with sales for Kawasaki contracting by 0.8%. 

The KLX110 was the star performer for Team Green with 1,433 sold, a 13.8 per cent increase over 2015.

The Ninja 300 also remained a strong contender in the Road Bike and LAMS categories, taking sixth place in both, despite sales down 29.4 per cent on 2015.

The Kawasaki ZX-10R also saw growth over 2015 with sales up to 217, a 13.6 per cent increase. 

Harley-Davidosn #4

Harley-Davidson was fourth overall with nine per cent (10,282),a strong five-per cent increase over 2015 sales.

Considering Harley only operate in the road bike market, with no off-road, scooter or ATV sales to be recorded, this result underlines the massive strength of Harley-Davidson in the Australian motorcycle market. On road motorcycles only, Harley continue to be the biggest selling road bike brand in Australia, with 10,282 sales to Honda’s 9,651 road sales.

The Street 500 continues to sell amazingly well and, Honda’s NBC110 aside, was Australia’s top selling road registered motorcycle and LAMS machine available to the general public.

Other Harley-Davidson models of note included the Breakout FXSB with 1,509 sold, taking second place in the Cruiser category only to the previously mentioned Street 500 (XG500), with the Night Rod Special (VRSCDX) third with 902 sold, a 28.5 per cent increase over 2015.

Suzuki #5

Suzuki were fifth overall on combined road, off-road, scooter and ATV sales, with 8.6 per cent of the total market.  (9,924 sales).

Suzuki’s DR650 (529)and DR-Z400E (878) continued their positions as the sales stalwarts for the Hammamatsu based brand.

Overall Suzuki grew their sales by 1.2 per cent in 2016. 

KTM #6

KTM showed strong improvement in 2016, with a 28.6 per cent increase in sales, up to 8,679 models sold, led by their strong Off Road line up, which make up over 80 per cent of their sales.

KTM’s strongest performer proved the 500EXC with a 42.5 per cent increase in sales over 2015 to reach 902 sold. Other strong performers included the 350EXCF (846 up 40.3 per cent ), 300EXC (830 up 58.1 per cent ) and 450EXC (584 up 52.9 per cent ).

In the Enduro segment, KTM’s 450SXF (470), 85SX (457) and 250 SFX (443) also performed strongly with growth of 27.7, 23.3 and 27.3 per cent respectively. KTM’s LAMS offerings, in the RC390 and Duke 390 also saw strong growth with 513 sales (+43.3 per cent ) and 391 sales (+28.2 per cent ) respectively.

BMW #7

BMW saw sales of 3,301 models in 2016, a 1.3 per cent increase on the 2015 year, with that growth helped along by an increase in scooter sales, up to 123, from 57 in 2015.

When most of the scooter market again contracted, it is interesting to note that BMW’s top of the market scooter offerings actually picked up sales in 2016. 

Strong models for the BMW Motorrad brand include the S 1000 RR with 345 sold in 2016, and their R 1200 GS (383) and R 1200 GS Adventure (370) models, as well as the G 650 GS (241) and F 700 GS (211). The R 1200 GS Adventure saw 14.9 per cent growth over 2015 sales, with the F 700 GS boasting a 25.6 per cent increase in the same period.

Triumph #8

Triumph saw a strong increase in sales, up 7.8 per cent to 3,125 total.

Performers for the British marque included the Bonneville T120 introduced this year with 289 sales, while the Thruxton saw a 141.4 per cent increase from the 152 sold in 2015, to 367 in 2016 with the arrival of the new model.

Sales of the Adventure Touring Tiger 800XC dropped 17.4 per cent but still reached 276, placing it sixth in the adventure category.

Husqvarna #9

Husqvarna was the biggest improver in 2016, the once Swedish, but now Austrian built and KTM owned brand, up 39 per cent over 2015 to move into the overall top ten selling motorcycle brands for sales year 2016, in the tenth position.

Strong performers from the Husqvarna range included the TE300 (358 up 30.2 per cent), FE350 (305 up 27.6 per cent) and FE501 (266 up 34.3 per cent) models

BRP #10

Specialist ATV company BRP and its Can-Am brand rounded out the top ten and recorded a massive 32.8 per cent growth in 2016.

Ducati #11

Ducati sales were down 8.2 per cent. However, Ducati did have some strong performers including their Diavel with 418 units sold, up an impressive 36.2 per cent on 2015, while the Ducati 959 Panigale led the Super Sport category apart from the CBR500R and CBR300R. The larger 1299 Panigale also boasted 192 sales, up 29.7 per cent.

The Multistrada 1200 also proved consistent, with 255 sold, compared to 244 in 2015. The Scrambler 800 saw 284 units sold, down 28.1 per cent on 2015’s 395 figure.

Aprilia saw sales of 648, down 23.3 per cent, represented across both their Road Bike and Scooter ranges equally.

Victory also saw sales fall, posting 274 models sold in 2016, down 28.1 per cent. Indian on the other hand maintained stronger figures, with 640 sold down just 12.8 per cent on the proceeding year. Polaris recently announced that Victory Motorcycles and associated operations will be wound down, starting immediately.

Moto Guzzi also saw their figures shrink quite markedly, to 215 units, down 17 per cent. VMoto saw sales fall to 78, down 29.1 per cent.

Vespa  also saw sales drop, posting 977 units moved for 2016, down 6.4 per cent.

Norton’s entry back into the market saw the reborn British brand’s original 50 orders in 2015, shrink to only 35 in 2016, a decline of 30 per cent.

Hyosung’s fall from grace continued in 2016 with the once strong performing brand now a shadow of its former self. 2015 was a bad year for the brand and the trend continued in 2016 with Hyosung going further backwards to the tune of 62.8 per cent, falling to just 165 models sold.

Australian Road Motorcycle Sales

Road bike sales were again healthy across the industry, increasing 5.3 per cent over the 2015 result and accounting for 41.6 per cent of the total market. Australians rode home with a total of 47,753 new road bikes in 2016.

2016 Australian Road Bike Sales
Manufacturer – 2016 sales – 2015 sales – % change

1. Harley Davidson – 10,282 – 9,794 +5.0%
2. Honda – 9,651 – 7,691 +25.5%
3. Yamaha – 7,768 – 6,914 +12.4%
4. Kawasaki – 4,798 – 5,404 -11.2%
5. BMW – 3,178 – 3,201 -0.7%
6. Triumph – 3,125 – 2,900 +7.8%
7. Suzuki – 3,124 – 3,404 -8.2%
8. Ducati – 2,013 – 2,194 -8.2%
9. KTM – 1,656 – 1,355 +22.2%
10. Indian – 640 – 734 -12.8%
11. Aprilia – 275 – 358 -23.2%
12. Victory – 274 – 381 -28.1%
13. Moto Guzzi – 215 – 259 -17.0%
14. Hyosung – 165 – 443 -62.8%
15. Husqvarna – 116 – 11 +954.5%
16. Norton – 35 – 50 -30.0%
17. Torino – 4 – 4 +0.0%

Harley-Davidson took out the top sales position in the road bike category. The Milwaukee (USA) based manufacturer sold 10,282 new road bikes across Australia in 2016 to claim a leading segment share of 21.5 per cent. This included a five per cent increase over the brand’s 2015 sales figures.

Honda was the second highest selling brand in this category, with 20.2 per cent of national road bike sales (9,651), boasting the strongest Road Bike sales growth of the larger players, with a 25.5 per cent increase over their 2015 figure.

Honda was followed by Yamaha with 16.3 per cent (7,768 sales), who saw an increase of 12.4 per cent over their 2015 sales. Kawasaki was 10.1 per cent (4,798) but saw a drop of 11.2 per cent from 2015.

BMW held 6.7 (3,178) per cent of market share, a figure closely resembling the previous years sales. Triumph and Suzuki were not far behind with 3,125 and 3,124 sales respectively, with Triumph seeing a 7.8 per cent growth in sales, while Suzuki’s dropped by 8.2 per cent.

Ducati moved 2013 units, losing ground on their 2015 sales figures by 8.2 per cent, while KTM sold 1,656 road machines, representing a strong growth of 22.2 per cent.

Australian Off Road Motorcycle Sales

Off-road motorcycle purchases accounted for almost 35 per cent of the total market with 39,710 sales. The popularity of this segment grew at a slightly higher rate than that of road bikes in 2016, with the 39,710 off-road sales for 2016 representing a 6.3 per cent increase on 2015 figures.

2016 Australian Off Road Bike Sales
Manufacturer – 2016 sales – 2015 sales – % change

1. Yamaha – 12,090 – 12,048 +0.3%
2. Honda – 9,848 – 10,318 -4.6%
3. KTM – 7,023 – 5,379 +30.6%
4. Kawasaki – 4,382 – 4,040 +8.5%
5. Suzuki – 4,081 – 3,822 +6.8%
6. Husqvarna – 2,052 – 1,549 +32.5%

Yamaha again led the market for off-road motorcycles, selling 30.5 per cent (12,090) of the total number sold in this segment. This included a small 0.3 per cent increase over 2015 sales.

Boasting second place was Honda with 24.8 per cent (9,848 sales), representing a drop of 4.6 per cent – the only brand to experience a drop in Off Road model sales in 2016.

KTM was third, with 17.7 per cent of the market share at 7,023 units sold. This included a 30.6 per cent increase over 2015, representing the biggest annual unit sale increase in the segment (1,644), with only Husqvarna boasting a larger percentage increase.

Kawasaki captured 11.0 per cent of the Off Road market, with 4,382 units, an increase of 8.5 per cent.

Suzuki held 10.3 per cent with 4,081 units, an increase of 6.8 per cent from 2015.

Husqvarna posted the strongest percentage gain, up 32.5 per cent with 2,052 sold representing 5.1 per cent of the total market.

Australian ATV Sales

The ATV market grew by a solid 14.4 per cent over 2015, with a total of 22,834 ATVs sold nationally in 2016. ATV sales represented 19.9 per cent of the total motorcycle market.

2016 Australian ATV Sales
Manufacturer – 2016 sales – 2015 sales – % change

1. Polaris – 6,037 – 5,095 +18.5%
2. Honda – 5,832 – 5,526 +5.5%
3. Yamaha – 4,692 – 3,922 +19.6%
4. BRP Australia – 2,524 – 1,901 +32.8%
5. Suzuki – 2,337 – 2,283 +2.4%
6. Kawasaki – 1,412 – 1,231 +14.7%

Polaris was the leading ATV brand with a 26.4 per cent share, or 6,037 sales. This represented a 18.5 per cent increase over 2015 figures, with two of the top 10 selling ATV models, with their Sportsman 570 (903 units) and Outlaw 50 (753 units, up 86.8 per cent) models.

Honda was second with 25.5 per cent (5,832 sales), and a more modest increase of 5.5 per cent over 2015. Honda also dominated the top 10 selling ATV models, holding five of the top 10 spots, including first and second.

The Honda TRX250TM was overall leader with 1,050 units sold (up 34.1 per cent), followed by the TRX500FM (923 units, down 7.1 per cent), then the TRX420FM (789 down 17.3 per cent) in the sixth position, TRX420TM (551 units up 2.4 per cent) ninth, and TRX420FA (470 units, down 16.2 per cent) tenth.

Yamaha was third with 20.5 per cent (4,692) of market share, up 19.6 per cent on 2015 and also heavily represented in the top 10 selling models. These included the Yamaha YFM90R (820 units, up 67.3 per cent) fourth, YFM450FA/P (820 units, up 20.8 per cent) fifth, and YFM350 (639 units, down 2.7 per cent) in eighth of the top 10.

BRP was fourth with a 11.1 per cent (2,524) share and a strong 32.8 per cent growth over 2015, narrowly edging out Suzuki in fifth with 10.2 per cent (2,337) of market share and only 2.4 per cent growth in sales over 2015.

Kawasaki sold 1,412 units, with 14.7 per cent growth over 2015 and 6.1 per cent of the market share.

Australian Scooter Sales

Scooters continued their decline in popularity with total sales in this segment of 4,486, down 11.0 per cent on 2015.

2016 Australian Scooter Sales
Manufacturer – 2016 sales – 2015 sales – % change

1. Piaggio – 1,075 – 1,011 +6.3%
2. Vespa – 977 – 1,044 -6.4%
3. Honda – 945 – 1,000 -5.5%
4. Suzuki – 382 – 297 +28.6%
5. Aprilia – 373 – 487 -23.4%
6. Yamaha – 349 – 406 -14.0%
7. Others – 133 – 565 -76.5%
8. BMW – 123 – 57 +115.8%
9. VMoto – 78 – 110 -29.1%
10. Torino – 51 – 65 -21.5%

Italian-based manufacturer Piaggio remained the segment leader market with a 24.0 per cent share (1,075 sales) increasing by 6.3 per cent over 2015 figures. This included Australia’s top selling scooter, the Piaggio Fly 150 (368 units), as well as the well represented Zip 50 (259 units sold) and Typhoon 50 (190 units sold).

This was followed by Vespa in second place with 21.8 per cent (977 sales), who saw a decrease in 6.4 per cent. Strong Vespa performers included the GTS 300 (248 units sold) and Primavera 150 (229 units sold, up 35.5 per cent on 2015 figures).

Honda was third in the scooter ranks, with 21.1 per cent (945 sales), including three of the top five selling scooters, with the WW150 (305 units), NSC110 (289 units) and MW110 (255 units sold).

Suzuki was fourth with 8.5 per cent of the market, with 382 sales, most of which were the Suzuki Address (269 sold in 2016).

Aprilia fifth with 8.3 per cent (373 sales), BMW sixth with 123 units sold (up 115.8 per cent on 2015), while VMoto saw sales fall to 78, as did Torino with just 51 units sold.

Scooter sales accounted for 3.9 per cent of the total 2016 motorcycle market.