According to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, the retail sales volume of passenger cars in the national market in July 2025 was 1.826 million units, a year-on-year increase of 6.3%. Among them, the retail sales of domestic brands reached 1.21 million units, a year-on-year increase of 14%, with a share of 65.9%, a year-on-year increase of 4 percentage points. The retail sales of mainstream joint venture brands reached 450000 units, a year-on-year increase of 1%, with a market share of 24.5%. Luxury car retail sales reached 170000 units, a year-on-year decrease of 20%, with a market share of 9.3%.

Analyzing the list of the top 40 fuel vehicle sales in July, there are several pieces of information worth paying attention to, which can reveal some changes in the fuel vehicle market.

The sales of the "Two Yis" have halved, and Volkswagen and Toyota dominate the gasoline car market

The sales of the "Two Yis" have halved, and Volkswagen and Toyota dominate the gasoline car market

Joint venture led

German Japanese split

Among the top 40 fuel powered vehicles, joint venture brands occupy 27 seats, while domestic brands occupy 13 seats; Among the 27 fuel powered models with sales exceeding 10000, 17 are joint ventures and 10 are domestically produced. Overall, in the fuel vehicle market, joint venture brands still have a clear advantage.

Among various joint venture brands, there are 13 German and 13 Japanese brands respectively, which can be said to be evenly distributed. Among the 13 Japanese models, Toyota holds 8 seats, surpassing Honda's 3 seats and Nissan's 2 seats. Toyota's strong brand has also had a direct impact on the terminal market, with prices of Corolla and Corolla experiencing a correction in the past two months, including the Camry. The Camry has been the best-selling fuel B-class car for several consecutive months, with 17719 units sold in July.

Sales of 'Two Yis' halved

Discounts up to 50000 yuan

The Xuan Yi and Lang Yi have always been at the forefront of gasoline powered cars because they are affordable and fuel-efficient, with a wide range of car models to choose from, and both new and old models sold together; Especially the Lavida, after the upgrade, there will be four models available for sale simultaneously. In July, the sales of both Yis exceeded 23000 units, which is equivalent to halving the peak sales of over 40000 units, with discounts of up to 50000 units. The entry-level price of the classic Xuan Yi is less than 60000 yuan.

The sales of the "Two Yis" have halved, and Volkswagen and Toyota dominate the gasoline car market

Honda's' hidden concerns':

PHEV cannot sell well, and it is difficult to maintain its market share

Among the 27 fuel powered models with sales exceeding 10000, there are a total of 16 German and Japanese models (9 German and 7 Japanese); Among them, Volkswagen and Toyota have a total of 14 models, occupying an overwhelming advantage. It is worth mentioning that none of Honda's models have sold over 10000 units, with the best performing CR-V selling 9873 units in the month. Honda is facing an accelerated decline in sales.

Moreover, in terms of new energy PHEV models, the sales of Guangben and Dongben are both unsatisfactory, with the Accord PHEV even selling around 10 units per month. Fortunately, the fuel version of the Accord still has a good reputation in the market, just like the CR-V, which has kept the sales of these two cars stable at over 9500 units.

The sales of the "Two Yis" have halved, and Volkswagen and Toyota dominate the gasoline car market

Joint venture compact SUV:

Exchange price for quantity, cash discount starting at 50000 yuan

Joint venture compact SUVs, including the Rongfang, Tiguan L, Tanyue, Enclave PLUS, CR-V, and Haoying, can sell over 8500 units per month mainly through low prices, with cash discounts starting at 50000 yuan. A discount of 69000 yuan is offered on the popular version of Tanyue 1.5T, and if exchanged, there is also a provincial/national/factory subsidy of over 14000 yuan. The discount for the Enclave PLUS P 2.0T Platinum Edition is as high as 65000 yuan, accompanied by various reductions.

It can be found that only the Enclave PLUS was shortlisted in the American series, while the Buick sedan and GL8 were not shortlisted. The decline of Buick's brand is already very obvious.

Geely Chang'an Chery strengthens

Among the top 40 sales models, Geely has 5 models, Changan has 3 models, and Chery also has 2 models. Among them, the Geely Boyue L ranks third with 21046 units, making it the best-selling gasoline car among domestic brands. In addition, Geely also has four models under its umbrella, including Xingyue L, Xingrui L, Emgrand, and Binyue, with monthly sales exceeding 10000 units. Geely is in a strategic and proactive position, with balanced development and flexible entry and exit in both gasoline and electric vehicles.

There is no phenomenon level star model Haval H6 on the list, replaced by Haval Big Dog, which is somewhat impressive. The discount for Big Dog is around 28000 to 29000 yuan, and there is no additional price for the 26 new models with added configurations. According to sales, the Big Dog is a car that can be driven with its eyes closed.

The sales of the "Two Yis" have halved, and Volkswagen and Toyota dominate the gasoline car market

Joint venture minor modification and allocation reduction

Self owned brands come with additional accessories at no extra cost

Studying the best-selling car models that rank among the top in sales reveals a phenomenon: the prices of gasoline cars are currently very low, with significant discounts. However, only domestic brands are still investing heavily in improving technology for product iteration (including size and configuration upgrades), while joint venture brands are basically making minor modifications and reductions, including German and Japanese models. For example, the Volkswagen Tiguan has been downgraded to a spare tire, which is now an optional feature. If you want it, you will need an additional 200 yuan, which shows the extent of the downgrade.

So you will find that the discounts for domestic brands are much less compared to joint ventures. For example, the discount for the Arrizo 8 is about 22000-28000 yuan, and the discount for the Geely Xingrui is 17000 yuan -18000 yuan. However, the same level of joint venture competitors, the Xuan Yi, have discounts as high as 45000 yuan, the Lang Yi has discounts as high as 50000 yuan, and the Sagitar has discounts as high as 53000 yuan. Consumers can judge for themselves, and market discounts are also a reflection of reputation and technological strength.