Domestic Brands Now Dominate Japan’s Import Market, While Foreign Companies Lead U.S. Exports.

The largest imported car brand in Japan is no longer Mercedes-Benz. It’s not a BMW or a Volkswagen; it’s a domestic Suzuki. Although it sounds paradoxical at first glance, it is an increasingly important trend. Japanese manufacturers develop and produce cars in lower-cost countries and then import them into their own market.

In the first six months of this year, Japanese brands imported 72,330 cars from their foreign factories into Japan, even 38 percent more than in the same period last year. Almost half belongs to Suzuki, which imported 34,288 vehicles, i.e. 91 percent more than the year before. With that, it overtook Mercedes-Benz, which sold 23,064 cars in Japan in the first half of the year.

Suzuki’s success is almost entirely due to the Jimny Nomade, a five-door version of the popular small SUV. It is produced in India, and in the first six months, 26,682 units were delivered to Japanese customers. An extra pair of doors and more space in the back seats have turned the Jimny into a car that is also interesting for families. Suzuki introduced the Nomad in Japan in early 2025 as the first five-door Jimny.

A similar strategy is used by Toyota, which imported 15,977 cars to Japan during the first half of the year. Much of it relates to Thai-built models, including the Hilux, joined by the new Land Cruiser FJ. Toyota went from being an almost negligible importer of its own cars to becoming one of the leading brands in this unusual part of the Japanese market.

However, the trend is not the same for all manufacturers. Honda’s imports fell 32 percent to 14,937 vehicles, partly due to weaker demand for India’s WR-V. Mazda imported 3,309 cars, 20 percent less than the year before.

Global automotive production has long ceased to follow brand citizenship. A good example is the USA. The largest American car exporter by value is not Ford, General Motors or Tesla, but the German BMW. In 2025, the factory in Spartanburg, South Carolina exported almost 200,000 SUVs to approximately 120 countries, with a total value of nine billion dollars.

Suzuki is thus the largest “foreign” manufacturer in its own market, while BMW is the largest automobile exporter from the USA. In today’s industry, the badge on the engine cover says less and less about where the car was actually manufactured.

• Read More: Japanese Automakers Warn That US-Imported Vehicles Don’t Meet Local Cosmetic Standards