This Is The Most Popular Car In Florida, According To The Data

When we look at automotive sales rankings in America, the most commonly discussed figures will be the ones that cover the entire country – "America's Best-Selling Truck" and so forth. But what about each of the individual states? One corner of the country can be very different from another in terms of culture and consumer tastes, and that includes which model of car is the most popular. For the most part, the majority of a state's car sales data broadly follows national trends, but once you start breaking it down, you do begin to notice some interesting regional differences. 

For example, the state of Michigan, not surprisingly, is among the states with the highest percentage of American cars on its roads. Texas buyers, meanwhile, choose more pickup trucks, and California of course, has the all-electric Tesla at the top of its rankings. But what about the state of Florida? Florida is America's third-most-populous state, and fittingly, its most popular car represents the middle ground of America's current auto market, with neither a pickup truck nor an electric vehicle in sight. Which vehicle is number one in the Sunshine State? That would be Toyota's immensely popular RAV4 crossover, a vehicle that's no stranger to coming in at the top of the charts.

The state-by-state list was compiled by Car & Driver Magazine, which took 2023 car registration data from Experian to break down the three most popular vehicles in each of America's 50 states. Seeing the RAV4 at the top of the list for Florida comes as no shock at all. Per Car & Driver, the RAV4 took the number one spot in 12 different states, and overall, it regularly comes in as Toyota's most popular model nationwide and the best-selling non-pickup truck in America. 

This Toyota crossover is the undisputed most popular SUV in America by volume, and the RAV4 is also the best-selling vehicle in the world. We've reviewed the current-generation RAV4 on numerous occasions and have found, like so many buyers, that its blend of efficiency (especially in hybrid form), value, and usability is very appealing, even if it's not the most exciting entry in the segment. But as the numbers show, when it comes to signing the papers, efficiency and reliability are always going to rate highest among mainstream car buyers. Even better, for both Toyota and potential RAV4 buyers in Florida and elsewhere, is that there's a new RAV4 being rolled out right now that should only improve upon the old one by moving to an all-hybrid powertrain layout like the Toyota Camry recently did. 

Interestingly enough, that venerable Toyota Camry actually earned the third spot among Florida's most popular cars, with the RAV4's rival, the Honda CR-V, coming in at number two. This is notable because the Camry was once regularly ranked at the best-selling car in America, but in these rankings, Toyota's mid-sized sedan appears in just three of the 50 different state rankings. And it was only the top-seller in one state (Alabama). In our eyes, the latest Toyota Camry is still a very good sedan, but these sales figures are emblematic of the rapid shift of American car buyers away from mid-sized sedans and into CUVs and SUVs as the mainstream vehicle of choice. In other words, the RAV4 really is the "new Camry" for Toyota.

Looking at things geographically, Florida's top-three best sellers make a lot of sense as an indicator of the state's overall driving tastes. You don't see the trucks that dominated the Midwestern and Southern states or the Teslas that topped the rankings in West Coast and East Coast states. Obviously, there are still plenty of new pickups and EVs sold every year in Florida, but this particular top-three shows the state as the comfortable midpoint between two very different sides of the modern American auto market.