Toyota's four-year run as the world's top-selling car maker has ended as the Japanese company said today its global sales for 2016 fell short of Volkswagen.
Toyota said global sales across its Toyota, Lexus, Daihatsu minicar and Hino Motors truck brands rose 0.2% to 10.18 million last year from 2015.
This was less than the 10.3 million sold by Volkswagen, which posted record high global sales despite its diesel emissions scandal.
Toyota's overall global sales were supported by a 5.5% rise in domestic sales for the Toyota brand following new launches for models including the Prius.
However overseas sales slipped 0.6% as demand eased in North America, and in the Middle East and Africa.
Toyota, which had been the world's top-selling car maker on an annual basis since 2012, estimates global sales to increase to around 10.23 million vehicles in 2017.
Figures from the Central Statistics Office earlier this month also showed that Volkswagen was the most popular make of new private cars licensed in Ireland last year.
A total of 15,163 Volkswagen cars were sold, followed by 14,772 Toyotas and 14,682 Hyundai cars.
