Australian motorcycle sales rising in 2026 as off-road leads the way

Motorcycle Sales Figures
January 1 through March 31, 2026
Australia – FCAI brands

Australia’s FCAI-audited motorcycle market made a solid start to 2026, with first-quarter sales rising 7.4 per cent over the same period last year. A total of 20,624 units were recorded across road bikes, off-road motorcycles, scooters and off-highway vehicles during the January to March period, but that overall gain was driven overwhelmingly by one segment.

Off-road motorcycles were the standout performer, jumping 26.7 per cent year-on-year to 8,737 units. That made off-road the biggest segment in the market for the quarter and more than offset declines elsewhere. It also pushed the category back above its 2023 level, although it still remains short of the 9,644 off-road units recorded in the opening quarter of 2022.  Kids fun bikes make up a hefty slice of the off-road sales volume.

By contrast, the road bike segment continued to soften slightly. Road motorcycle sales came in at 7,815 units, down 3.2 per cent on Q1 last year, and well below the 8,217 recorded in Q1 2024, the 9,150 sold in Q1 2023, and the 9,723 moved in the same period of 2022. In other words, while the broader market headline is positive, the traditional road segment is still working against a longer-term, slightly downward trend.

Scooters posted a modest gain, up 7.8 per cent to 1,431 units, suggesting demand in that segment remains relatively stable, even if it is still below earlier highs.

OHV sales, meanwhile, slipped 9.2 per cent to 2,641 units, continuing a decline from 2,909 in Q1 last year and well under the 3,548 recorded in Q1 2023.

Taken as a whole, the Q1 result is stronger than the opening quarter of 2025 and also ahead of 2024, when 19,903 units were recorded. However, the market still sits below the post-pandemic highs of recent years, with total first-quarter sales trailing the 22,374 units recorded in 2023 and the 24,388 sold in Q1 2022. That makes the 2026 start encouraging, but not yet a return to the broader highs the industry enjoyed earlier in the decade.

Motorcycles buck the broader vehicle trend

The contrast with the broader car market is telling. Motorcycle sales rose 7.4 per cent in Q1 2026, but almost all of that growth came from off-road machinery, while road and OHV segments softened. New-car sales, meanwhile, actually fell 3.3 per cent in March to 105,058 units, even though EVs surged to a record 14.6 per cent share, suggesting the automotive market is currently being defined more by a change in drivetrain mix than by any wider growth in demand.

It is also important to note that the FCAI figures do not paint a complete picture of the Australian motorcycle market. The official audit does not include a number of non-FCAI brands, with Urban Moto Imports brands such as Royal Enfield, Benelli, MV Agusta, Segway and Rieju excluded, along with Mojo Motorcycles-distributed brands including CFMOTO, Kymco, Sherco and Landboss. That means the real size of the total Australian market is materially larger than the FCAI tally suggests.

However, on the data we do have, the upshot from Q1 is fairly clear. Off-road is currently carrying the market, scooters have edged forward, and road bike sales remain under pressure. So while the headline shows growth, the underlying split suggests the Australian market remains uneven rather than uniformly strong.

Sales by segment were as follows:

Motorcycle Sales Figures (FCAI)

January 1 through March 31, 2026, compared to 2025

Q1 Australian Motorcycle Sales Figures
Compared to recent years