Honda HR-V trumps Toyota Corolla Cross for Thailand's king of small SUVs crown in Q1 2023

Thai publication, Autolife Thailand has compiled its sales chart for Thailand’s subcompact SUVs for the first quarter (Q1) of 2023 and maintaining its lead from December last year is the Honda HR-V.

With 7,446 units sold between January and March 2023, the HR-V took the lead ahead of the Kingdom’s best-selling subcompact SUV in 2022, the Toyota Corolla Cross which sold 5,288 units in the first three months of 2023.

Combined, both the HR-V and Corolla Cross remain the most popular choice among Thai buyers in this segment with a market share of 66.7%. Despite becoming the overall best-selling SUV in Thailand in 2022, the Corolla Cross experienced a drop in sales from November 2022 when the HR-V began to outsell it.

Also read: Honda HR-V narrowly misses Corolla Cross as Thailand's number one SUV in 2022

Taking third place in Q1 2023 is the Nissan Kicks which saw 1,875 units sold and is followed by the Mazda CX-30 and Mazda CX-3 with 968 units and 885 units respectively.

Despite being a newcomer and having launched in March 2023, the Honda WR-V managed to become the 6th best-selling sub-compact crossover of the month with 258 units sold. The HR-V’s smaller brother managed to outsell the likes of the Mazda CX-3, Subaru XV, and the Hyundai Creta in the Land of Smiles.

Also read: 2023 Honda WR-V launched in Thailand - Honda Sensing as standard but pricier than City Hatchback

The WR-V is expected to make its Malaysian debut sometime this year with spyshots of the Perodua Ativa rival being spotted on our highways. The WR-V is among the four models hinted at by Honda Malaysia to make its entry into the market this year along with the Civic Type R FL5, the facelifted City, and the all-new CR-V.

Also read: Honda Malaysia to launch 4 new 2023 models - WR-V, CR-V, Civic Type-R FL5, and City facelift to raise market share to 12.3 percent