September sales numbers: Drive.com

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Mazda3 and Holden Commodore have been dominating 2011's monthly sales charts, but Toyota's small car has made a surprise return to the top in September.

Toyota's Corolla has made a surprise return to the top of the sales charts, according to the latest industry sales figures.

The Japanese small car was the best-selling vehicle in September, as sales of the perennial front-runners the Holden Commodore and Mazda3 both slipped during the month.

toyota sold 3766 Corollas in September compared with 3712 Commodores and 2703 Mazda3s. The Corolla last topped monthly sales in January.

Advertisement: Story continues below A rare disappointing month for Mazda saw its overall sales drop 32 per cent compared to September 2010. The Mazda3 was August's most popular car with buyers but last month it was also outsold by the Holden Cruze (3117) and Toyota Hilux (3191).

The majority of Japanese brands continue to register a fall in sales as they recover from March's tsunami. Subaru and Suzuki recorded September declines of about 20 per cent, with Mitsubishi down 10 per cent and Honda continuing its woes with a 29 per cent drop.

Toyota (up 7.4%) and Nissan (up 25.7%) were two rare exceptions in September, with Toyota's luxury brand Lexus achieved an impressive 89% growth to bring its year on year performance to neutral.

Another 3000-plus result for the Cruze means Holden's sedan and Commodore large car accounted for nearly two-thirds of the local car maker's sales in September.

It was another mixed month for Ford. Falcon sales again dropped, by 25 per cent in September, meaning its 1708 sales were almost matched by the Volkswagen Golf (1664). But some of the blue oval's European imports continue to shine. The Fiesta city car, with 1203 sales, fell just shy of the Mazda2, while the Mondeo medium car jumped 47 per cent for the month.

US car maker Chrysler continues to struggle with the Chrysler brand itself in Australia, down 66 per cent for the month and 35 per cent year on year, though Dodge and Jeep both increased sales by more than 100 per cent compared to September 2010 (up 173% and 101% respectively).

Australia's vehicle market grew 2.1 per cent compared to September 2010 but the market continues to fall short of last year's sales performance, down 3.7 per cent year to date.

Top 10 Vehicle sales - September 2011

Toyota Corolla 3766
Holden Commodore 3712
Toyota HiLux 3191
Holden Cruze 3117
Mazda3 2703
Hyundai i30 2493
Toyota Camry 2049
Nissan Navara 1885
Ford Falcon 1708
VW Golf 1664