Weekly Auto News
Updated: 4 days ago
17 October 2026
Toyota Settles Diesel Filter Class Action for a Record $750 Million
Toyota Australia has agreed to pay $750 million to settle two long-running class actions over defective diesel particulate filters (DPFs) fitted to 264,170 HiLux, Prado and Fortuner vehicles sold between October 2015 and April 2020.
Subject to Federal Court approval, it's the largest automotive class-action settlement in Australian history and nearly doubles Toyota Australia's record $380 million after-tax profit for the financial year to March 2026.
The proceedings concerned DPF systems on Toyota's 2.4-litre 2GD-FTV and 2.8-litre 1GD-FTV turbo-diesel engines. Owners alleged the filters could become blocked during normal driving, causing excessive white smoke, unpleasant exhaust odours, higher fuel consumption and extra servicing.
The Federal Court had earlier found the affected vehicles were not of acceptable quality. The settlement resolves both the original 2019 Williams action and the newer Taylor action, which had been listed for a two-week trial starting 19 October, prompting Toyota to name its own number first rather than let a judge decide.
Toyota introduced countermeasures during the dispute, including a standard manual DPF regeneration switch from June 2018 and a free repair program from 2020, and says it will continue to offer that remedy free of charge. Spread across more than 264,000 vehicles, the settlement works out to roughly $2,840 each before legal costs and the litigation funder take their share. For a brand already managing a 20%-plus sales decline and looming emissions penalties, it's a significant financial hitand a reminder that the data trail behind a defect, every affected VIN, engine, and build date, sits at the heart of how these disputes are defined and resolved.
BYD Looks Toyota "Square in the Eyes": We Know We Can Do Better
BYD Australia has made its ambition to become the country's number one brand explicit, with chief operating officer Stephen Collins telling Drive the company isn't satisfied with second place. "There's still daylight between Toyota and us. We know we can do better, we've just got to keep improving every day. We're expanding the network, and I think we're doing all the right things," Collins said. BYD overtook Ford in June to claim second on the year-to-date charts, though it still needs to roughly double its volume to close the gap on Toyota.
Collins pointed to fleet sales as the brand's next frontier. "We're very, very strong in retail, but we're investing more and more in fleet. It's a bit of a slower burn, we know that." The fleet and government channel has long been a Toyota stronghold, and cracking it is central to BYD's push for the top. Collins was emphatic that the brand isn't planning to ease off: "We're certainly not planning for a reduction. We're confident in what we can bring to the market."
The confidence is backed by momentum. BYD has gone from a standing start in 2022 to Australia's second-biggest brand in under four years, launched a sprawling range spanning sub-$20,000 EVs to performance utes, and is expanding its dealer and service network aggressively. Whether it can double its volume to challenge Toyota outright remains an open question, but a Chinese brand openly targeting the top of a market Toyota has dominated for decades marks how far the landscape has shifted.
Australia Ranked Among the World's Fastest-Growing EV Markets
New analysis from energy think tank Ember has ranked Australia and New Zealand among the two fastest-growing electric vehicle markets in the world, driven by the fuel-supply crisis that followed the Iran war in late February. Australia's EV market grew 136% between the start of March and the end of August, with only New Zealand posting stronger percentage growth. The surge continued into September, the second month running, with EVs accounting for nearly one in four new car sales.
The report frames EV adoption increasingly as an energy-security story, not just an environmental one. Globally, electric cars (including plug-in hybrids) displaced an estimated 200 million barrels of crude oil in oil-importing countries during the first six months of the Hormuz crisis, worth around A$29 billion. China accounted for the largest share of those savings, followed by the EU. Australia's own avoided oil imports were valued at roughly A$220-330 million, a modest figure globally but a meaningful one for a country that imports about 90% of its refined fuel.
The findings reinforce what's driven the Australian market all year: once a fuel shock pushes buyers toward EVs, the shift tends to stick. Fully electric cars hit new highs almost everywhere in 2026, with 49 of 56 tracked countries setting record BEV sales shares. For Australia, with cheap Chinese EVs now at or below petrol-car price points and fuel security firmly on the national agenda, the structural case for continued EV growth keeps strengthening, regardless of where petrol prices settle next.
Chery to Add Premium "Exlantix" Badge as Yet Another New Brand
Chery has confirmed it will bring a premium brand called Exlantix to Australia in the first half of 2027, its seventh local nameplate, adding to a portfolio that already spans Chery, Omoda, Jaecoo and Lepas, with the off-road iCaur and JLR-partnered Freelander also on the way.
Exlantix, Chery's electric and range-extender arm of its premium Exeed division (sold as Sterra in China), will target premium Chinese new-energy rivals like Zeekr and Denza rather than European brands, launching locally with the ET large SUV and the ES GT shooting brake, both shown in right-hand drive.
The move underscores the extraordinary pace of brand proliferation from a single parent company. Chery only returned to Australia in 2023; it now operates or has confirmed seven distinct brands, each requiring its own dealer network, marketing, warranty structure and after-sales support. The group's strategy of attacking multiple price points and segments simultaneously, from sub-$25,000 Omoda small SUVs to a premium Exlantix line, is designed to capture buyers who might otherwise cross-shop rival brands rather than switch between Chery's own badges.
For the broader market, Exlantix is another entrant in an increasingly crowded premium field. The question hanging over all of these launches is whether Australia's roughly 1.2-million-unit market can sustain the sheer number of brands now competing in it, with the total projected to pass 75 by 2031. For businesses tracking the vehicle fleet, each new sub-brand adds fresh model codes, VIN structures and specification data to an ecosystem already straining to keep pace with the rate of change.
Isuzu Rules Out an Electric D-Max for Now, But Says Green Tech Is Coming
Isuzu Ute Australia has confirmed that a battery-electric D-Max "isn't the answer" for the local market right now, but says electrified technology is firmly on the way as the brand navigates tightening emissions rules. The position reflects Isuzu's read of its own customer base: buyers who prioritise proven diesel capability for towing, payload and remote-area touring, and who the brand believes aren't yet ready for a fully electric ute given current charging infrastructure and range limitations.
The stance fits Isuzu's broader strategy on the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard. The brand has said it will try to absorb emissions penalties internally rather than pass them straight to customers, helped by around $18 million in NVES credits banked in 2025 that give it a couple of years of breathing room. Rather than rush a BEV ute to market, Isuzu is signalling it will introduce electrified technology, most likely hybrid or mild-hybrid systems, on its own timeline, when it judges the technology and the customer base are ready.
It's a calculated bet that runs counter to the wave of plug-in hybrid utes now arriving from BYD, Chery, GWM and Ford. Isuzu is wagering that its loyal, capability-focused buyers will stick with diesel through the transition, and that it can manage its compliance obligations without alienating them. In a market racing to electrify, Isuzu's measured, diesel-first approach stands out, and whether it proves prudent or too cautious will become clearer as NVES targets tighten sharply from 2027.
12 October 2026
September VFACTS: Ranger Back on Top, But EVs Again Outsell Petrol and Diesel
The Ford Ranger reclaimed its crown as Australia's best-selling vehicle in September with 5,062 sales, up 4% year-on-year, after a stop-sale throttled its August volumes. It edged out a tightly packed field: the Toyota RAV4 (4,624, up 81% on the back of its new generation), the Tesla Model Y (4,476) and the Toyota HiLux (4,455), with just 607 units separating the top four. The overall market reached 108,778 deliveries including Tesla and Polestar, up 1.8% on September 2025.
But the real story remained the powertrain shift. Battery-electric vehicles hit 24.2% market share, outselling both petrol and diesel individually for the second month running, with electrified vehicles of all types nudging 49.8% of the market.
BEV sales were up 117.7% year-on-year. Among the top 10 brands, only Tesla and the Chinese marques posted gains, while Ford (down 8.5%), Kia (down 19.5%) and Mazda (down 18.9%) all went backwards.
Chinese-built vehicles continued their dominance of the supply side, reaching 42,358 deliveries or 38.9% of the market, up 63.8% year-on-year and far ahead of Japan's 23,133. Nine of the top 20 individual models were built in China, and BYD has now settled firmly into second place on the year-to-date brand charts behind Toyota. The year-to-date market sits almost dead level with 2025, just 127 units behind, but its composition has transformed beyond recognition.
Mazda Accepts It Will Sell Fewer Cars as the Market Fragments
In a notable strategic concession, Mazda Australia has signalled it's prepared to accept lower annual sales volumes as the market fragments across more brands and powertrains. Managing director Vinesh Bhindi said the brand's long-held 100,000-sales-a-year benchmark is "not a locked-in number," a significant admission from a company that was until recently Australia's second-biggest seller. Mazda's year-to-date deliveries are down 15.9%, cutting its market share from 7.8% to 6.6%.
Mazda is leaning on China to fight back. Its first China-sourced model, the 6e electric liftback, has been joined by the CX-6e electric SUV, and Bhindi confirmed more Chinese-built Mazdas could follow. He expects the CX-6e could build to as many as 1,000 sales a month if current EV trends hold, pointing to the fringe benefits tax exemption as the key driver of demand. On track for around 85,000-90,000 sales in 2026, Mazda is choosing to compete on its own terms rather than chase volume at any cost.
Perhaps most striking was Mazda's stance on emissions policy. The brand said it's now comfortable with the current NVES settings, thanks to the uptick in EV demand, and is explicitly not interested in joining calls to weaken or scrap the scheme. Bhindi went further, arguing that even if the NVES were repealed, it wouldn't materially reverse the shift toward lower-emission vehicles: "Regardless of whether the legislation changes or not, I think there is still a pathway towards where we are today." It's a marked contrast to rivals lobbying hard for the rules to be softened.
Nissan's New Boss Calls the Upheaval a Passing "Perfect Storm"
Nissan Australia's new Managing Director for Oceania has pushed back on the narrative that legacy brands are being permanently overrun, arguing the current disruption is a temporary "perfect storm" that will eventually subside. Christian Milette, who joined from Nissan's North American operations, said he was genuinely surprised at how much ground Chinese brands have made in Australia compared to their "inexistent" presence in the US and Canada, describing their rise as "10 years in the making for some of them."
But Milette's core argument is that markets revert to the mean. He pointed to past crises and periods of economic instability that ultimately saw the car industry find its way back to a familiar balance, and suggested that as the fuel crisis subsides and economic pressures ease, buyers will drift back toward previous behaviours. He downplayed the idea that Nissan is among the brands under the most pressure, acknowledging sales are down year-on-year but rejecting the need to hit the "emergency button" and overhaul the brand's entire approach.
It's an optimistic read, and a contested one. The counter-argument, voiced by figures like former Kia boss Damien Meredith, is that this isn't a cyclical blip but a structural reordering, with Chinese brands potentially reaching 60% of the market by 2030. Whether Milette's "revert to the mean" thesis or the structural-shift view proves correct will define strategy for every legacy brand in the country. For now, September's data, with Chinese cars at 38.9% of supply, lends more weight to the structural case.
Emissions Policy Becomes an Election Battleground as Coalition Pledges NVES Repeal
The New Vehicle Efficiency Standard has become a political flashpoint, with the federal Liberal-National coalition pledging to repeal it. Shadow energy minister Dan Tehan confirmed legislation to scrap the scheme would be introduced within the first 30 days of a hypothetical Coalition government taking office, framing the standard as a driver of higher vehicle prices. The move sets up a clear policy divide heading into the next electoral cycle, with the automotive industry split on the issue.
The timing is pointed. NVES penalties begin to bite in earnest from 2027, as passenger-vehicle CO2 limits tighten from 117g/km in 2026 to 92g/km. Several brands, led by Mazda, have warned price rises are coming, while others including Isuzu say they'll try to absorb the costs. The Coalition's pledge gives price-sensitive buyers and diesel-dependent brands a potential reprieve, but it also injects uncertainty into product planning that manufacturers make years in advance.
Industry reaction has been mixed. While some brands and the FCAI have criticised aspects of the NVES, others, notably Mazda, have publicly declined to back repeal, arguing the shift to lower-emission vehicles is now being driven by consumer demand rather than regulation. With BEVs already at 24.2% of the market and climbing, the question is whether scrapping the standard would meaningfully change a trajectory that fuel prices, the FBT exemption and cheap Chinese EVs are already propelling. For businesses planning around the vehicle fleet of 2028 and beyond, the policy uncertainty is a genuine complication.
2026 Subaru Forester Hybrid Recalled Over Manufacturing Defect
Subaru Australia has issued a nationwide safety recall for 42 examples of the 2026 Forester Hybrid, citing a manufacturing defect that could allow the vehicle to roll away even when the transmission is in Park. The recall notice warns that cracks may develop in the support section of the parking pawl, inside the transaxle's intermediate case, meaning the parking lock function could fail and the vehicle move unexpectedly while parked, increasing the risk of an accident. Owners of affected vehicles are being contacted in writing to arrange free rectification.
Though the recall is small in number, it lands at a sensitive moment for Subaru, whose Australian sales are down around 30% year-to-date as it, like other mid-tier Japanese brands, loses ground to aggressively priced Chinese rivals. The Forester Hybrid was meant to be part of the fightback, adopting Toyota-derived hybrid technology to offer the efficiency buyers increasingly want without the price premium of a full EV. A quality issue on a key electrified model is an unwelcome setback.
Recalls are a routine part of the industry, but they carry particular weight in the current environment, where one of the lingering concerns about the wave of new Chinese entrants has been long-term reliability and build quality. An established Japanese brand recalling a key hybrid model is a reminder that quality issues aren't confined to newcomers, and that the data trail behind every recall, which vehicles are affected, by VIN, build date and variant, is exactly the kind of information that insurers, fleet operators and workshops rely on to manage their exposure.
5 October 2026
Chinese Operator Tuhu Buys mycar Service Chain for $403 Million
In a landmark deal for the automotive aftermarket, German giant Continental has agreed to sell mycar Tyre & Auto, one of Australia's largest service and repair chains, to Chinese automotive-services platform Tuhu for an enterprise value of A$403 million (around €250 million).
The deal covers roughly 280 stores and more than 1,600 employees, and remains subject to regulatory approval. It marks Tuhu's first move into the Australian market.
The buyer's scale is striking. Shanghai-based Tuhu operated 8,825 workshops across China as of 30 June 2026 and served around 31 million customers in the preceding 12 months, combining online booking with physical workshops. mycar itself generated revenue of A$524.7 million in 2025, up from A$491.8 million the year before. Continental, which acquired the chain in 2018, said the sale reflects its strategy to refocus on developing and manufacturing tyres, and will continue supplying tyres through the mycar network as a distribution partner.
Until now, the Chinese reshaping of Australia's car market has been a story about new-vehicle sales. This deal signals the next phase: Chinese capital moving into the lucrative aftermarket, the servicing, repair and tyre business that follows every car sold. With Chinese brands now supplying more than a third of new vehicles, a Chinese operator owning one of the country's biggest service networks is a logical, and significant, extension of that influence across the full vehicle lifecycle.
Tesla Sales Surge Again in September, Model Y Deliveries More Than Double for the Year
Tesla and Polestar deliveries jumped almost 20% year-on-year in September, according to Electric Vehicle Council data, pushing their combined 2026 tally beyond 43,000 vehicles, up 76.9% on the same period last year.
Tesla accounted for the overwhelming majority with 5,654 deliveries (up 21.3%), while Polestar slipped 15.3% to 200. The Tesla Model Y alone recorded 4,476 deliveries for the month, more than three-quarters of the combined total.
The Model Y's year-to-date figure of 35,930 is now up 108.4% on 2025, more than double its tally over the same period last year. Growth was recorded across every state and territory, with the Northern Territory posting the largest percentage increase at 113.3%, and even the slowest-growing market, Western Australia, rising 45.7%. The Model 3 also staged a notable recovery, jumping 60% year-on-year to 1,178 units for the month.
The momentum comes as Tesla further sharpens its pricing. The brand has just announced a stripped-down Model 3 rear-wheel-drive priced at just under $46,000 before on-road costs, nearly 20% cheaper than any other Tesla on sale in Australia, alongside a price cut for the Model Y Performance as it shifts production from Germany to Shanghai. With Chinese rivals pushing EV prices ever lower, even the market's dominant EV brand is being drawn into the value battle.
Hyundai Scraps Ioniq 3 for Australia as Small-EV Price War Bites
Hyundai has cancelled plans to bring its Ioniq 3 electric hatchback to Australia, just months after confirming it for an early-2027 launch, conceding the numbers no longer stack up in an increasingly cut-throat market for affordable EVs. "The business case is just too difficult given we need to source Ioniq 3 from Turkey," a Hyundai Australia spokesperson said. "The cost of importation is high, and the car will be fighting in a very price-sensitive segment. The numbers just don't work for us given the competition."
The Ioniq 3 was expected to land around $40,000 to $42,000, positioning it against the MG4, BYD Dolphin and Atto 2. But that segment has been transformed in a matter of months: BYD has cut the Atto 1 to $19,990 drive-away, launched the $24,990 Atto 2 DM-i plug-in hybrid, and Geely's EX2 arrived at $26,490. A Turkish-built hatch at $40,000-plus simply can't compete on price with Chinese rivals built at far lower cost.
It's the latest in a string of EVs quietly cancelled for Australia, and a telling signal of how the economics now work. Even a major, well-resourced brand like Hyundai, with strong local recognition and a reputation for value, has decided it can't make a Turkish-sourced small EV pay in a market where Chinese manufacturers are setting the price floor. Hyundai is understood to be looking at slotting a different EV into the Ioniq 3's place, quite possibly one sourced from China itself, as it already does with the Australian-market Elexio.
Isuzu Says D-Max and MU-X Price Rises Are Avoidable Despite Emissions Fines
Isuzu Ute Australia has signalled it will try to absorb the cost of New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES) penalties rather than pass them straight to customers, taking a notably different public stance to Mazda, which has already said price rises are inevitable.
Isuzu said it will look to spread the cost across its business first to minimise the impact on D-Max ute and MU-X SUV buyers, though it stopped short of ruling price rises out entirely.
The brand has some breathing room. Isuzu accumulated around $18 million in NVES credits in 2025, giving it two years to offset potential fines as the targets tighten. Its diesel-heavy lineup is squarely in the firing line as passenger-vehicle CO2 limits drop from 117g/km in 2026 to 92g/km in 2027, but the credit balance and a willingness to absorb costs internally give it options the company is clearly keen to exhaust before touching sticker prices.
Isuzu's position matters because it's one of the most diesel-dependent brands in a market shifting hard toward electrification, and its D-Max and MU-X remain genuine volume sellers.
In the same week, Isuzu also confirmed it won't bring its battery-electric D-Max to Australia, choosing to stick with diesel despite rising fuel prices and tightening emissions rules. It's a calculated bet that its loyal, capability-focused buyer base will stay with proven diesel even as the regulatory and cost pressures mount, a very different strategy to rivals racing to electrify.
All Australians to Help Fund 14,000 New EV Chargers via Power Bills
Australia's energy market rule-maker has backed a plan that will see every electricity customer help pay for a national rollout of public EV chargers, whether they drive an electric vehicle or not.
The Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC) has given draft approval to a rule allowing power distributors to install and operate up to 14,000 kerbside and regional chargers under a $40 million federal program, with the cost estimated to add around $1 a year to a typical household power bill for five years.
Under the funding structure, the Commonwealth covers roughly 30% of the installation cost, with power networks recovering the remaining 70% from consumers through network charges. The program deliberately targets regional "charging blackspots" and high-density urban areas where residents lack off-street parking, places private operators have been reluctant to serve commercially. It would roughly triple Australia's public charging network, which currently sits at just over 5,000 sites, at a time when the country has one of the lower EV-to-charger ratios in the developed world. A final determination is due by 17 December 2026.
The proposal has drawn criticism from those who argue it's unfair to charge all households, many battling cost-of-living pressures, for infrastructure that benefits EV drivers specifically. But supporters point out that charging availability, not vehicle price, is now the biggest barrier to EV adoption, and that public infrastructure has fallen well behind the surge in sales, with EVs outselling petrol cars for the first time in August. For fleet operators and the broader industry, closing the charging gap is essential to sustaining the electrification momentum the sales charts have been showing all year.
28 September 2026
Eagers Hits Record 15.9% Market Share, Buys Into $600m Super-Luxury Group
Eagers Automotive, Australia's largest dealer group, has taken a record 15.9% share of the national new-vehicle market and moved to acquire a 50% stake in the Melbourne and Adelaide-based Zagame super-luxury group, in a joint venture with founder Bobby Zagame.
Zagame turned over roughly $600 million in the year to June 2026 across about 2,000 new-vehicle sales and 1,800 used and wholesale sales, and carries 14 premium brands including exclusive rights to Ferrari, Lamborghini, Bentley, Rolls-Royce, McLaren and Aston Martin in Victoria.
The deal, targeted for completion at the end of November, caps a record year for Eagers, which posted revenue of $8.1 billion and underlying profit before tax of $250.4 million for FY26. It also marks a strategic shift: Eagers has increasingly favoured stakes over outright control, taking positions in CanadaOne Auto, Grand Motors Group and the subscription business Karmo rather than buying them outright. In the same quarter, it agreed to sell its New Zealand franchised dealership network to Armstrong's Motor Group, exiting a market it described as increasingly difficult given its small size, the influx of Chinese brands and the prevalence of grey used-car imports.
The moves illustrate the consolidation now reshaping automotive retail. As margins compress and Chinese brands pile in, scale has become essential, with industry analysts pointing to roughly $3 billion in turnover per group as the benchmark for resilience. Eagers pushing further into super-luxury, a segment relatively insulated from Chinese competition, while trimming its exposure to the tougher New Zealand market, clearly shows where the profit and the risk now sit.
Former Kia Boss: Legacy Brands Have Three Years to Work Out How They Survive
Damien Meredith, who led Kia Australia from 2014 until stepping into an advisory role in June 2026, has issued a blunt warning to the established brands he spent 12 years competing against: Chinese manufacturers could take 60% of the Australian market by the end of the decade, and the fight for survival starts in a little over three years. "The facts are the facts... it looks like by the end of this decade, 60% of sales will be Chinese," he said in an interview published 22 September. "They are saying it's 2032, but I think it will be sooner than that."
Meredith did the arithmetic out loud. In a 1.2-million-vehicle market, if Chinese brands take 720,000 sales, that leaves roughly 500,000 for every European, Japanese, Korean and American brand to divide between them. "You've got to set your strategy to that," he said. "You know what the Chinese are going to do. There is still a pool of cars, so you have to ask yourself how to get your share." He framed it as a survival challenge rather than the outright death of legacy brands, but the message to his own side was clear: plan for roughly half the sales you record today.
The warning carries weight because it comes from someone who grew Kia's local sales 193%, from 28,005 vehicles in 2014 to a record 82,105 in 2025, partly by pioneering the seven-year warranty that has since become an industry norm. Meredith isn't a Chinese executive talking his own book; he's a veteran of the fight telling established brands the ground has fundamentally shifted. With Volkswagen, Stellantis, Mitsubishi and Nissan all already under pressure, the timeline he's describing is uncomfortably short.
BYD Launches Australia's Cheapest Plug-in Hybrid at $24,990
Just weeks after making the Atto 1 the country's cheapest EV, BYD has unveiled Australia's most affordable plug-in hybrid: the Atto 2 DM-i, priced from $24,990 before on-road costs for the Essential grade and $29,990 for the Premium.
That undercuts the next-cheapest PHEV, BYD's own Sealion 5, by $9,000, and the Chery Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid by around $10,000. It even matches the base Suzuki Swift on price, a long-standing budget-car icon.
Both variants pair a 72kW 1.5-litre petrol engine with an electric motor driving the front wheels. The Essential uses a 7.85kWh Blade battery for a claimed 39km of electric-only range, while the Premium's larger 18.03kWh battery stretches that to 90km. BYD quotes fuel consumption of 1.8L/100km for the Essential and 0.7L/100km for the Premium, with total hybrid ranges of 845km and 895km, respectively.
Standard equipment is generous for the money, including a 360-degree camera, adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist and autonomous emergency braking across the range.
The launch continues BYD's relentless run of aggressive pricing, which has also seen recent cuts to the Atto 1 (now $19,990 drive-away) and Dolphin. The strategy is doing two things at once: capturing budget buyers who might otherwise have bought a petrol car, and banking NVES efficiency credits that offset penalties elsewhere in BYD's range. For the rest of the industry, a sub-$25,000 plug-in hybrid with 90km of electric range in top spec resets what buyers can expect to pay for electrification.
China's Oldest Car Brand, Hongqi, Confirmed for Australia as Luxury Marque "HQ"
Hongqi, China's oldest passenger-car brand, has confirmed it will launch in Australia under the shortened "HQ" name, with three electric SUVs and first customer deliveries expected from January 2027.
Owned by state-backed giant FAW Group, Hongqi was founded in 1958 to build limousines for Chinese government officials, and locally it will position itself as a technology-focused luxury alternative to Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi and Range Rover.
Its Australian range will be electric-only, even though Hongqi also sells hybrid and combustion models in China.
The brand has appointed a local CEO, Jim Wu (a co-founder of Leapmotor), and set an initial target of around 1,000 sales a month once its three SUVs are all in showrooms by mid-2027, with a longer-term goal of 30,000 annual sales. That volume would have placed HQ around 14th overall on 2025 figures, ahead of Volkswagen and comfortably above Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi's individual tallies.
The first model, the E-HS9, is a seven-seat electric SUV over 5,200mm long, to be followed by the smaller EHS5 (a Tesla Model Y and Zeekr 7X rival) and eventually a large sedan. Pricing is expected to undercut the German marques while offering high levels of standard equipment.
Hongqi's arrival is another marker of how the Chinese expansion into Australia is moving up-market, not just competing on price at the budget end. With Zeekr, Denza and now HQ all targeting the premium space, and BYD, Chery, GWM, Geely and others dominating the mainstream, the breadth of Chinese competition across every price point and segment is now close to total. Each new entrant adds another dealer network, warranty structure and data footprint for the wider industry to absorb.
Chery Rolls Out Factory Bonuses of Up to $7,000 as Discounting Deepens
Chery has launched a limited-time run of factory bonuses ranging from $1,500 to $7,000 across its 2025-build stock, suggesting the intense discounting that defined the mid-year period is continuing well into spring.
The Tiggo 4 has $1,500 knocked off, the Tiggo 7 gets $2,000 to $5,000 depending on variant, the Tiggo 8 drops $5,000, and the Tiggo 9 Super Hybrid sits at the top of the tree with $7,000 off. The offer runs until 30 September while stocks last, and can be combined with other Chery retail promotions.
The bonuses arrive in a market where value has become the dominant battleground. BYD has cut the Atto 1 to $19,990 drive-away and launched the $24,990 Atto 2 DM-i; Geely is running sharp finance deals, and Hyundai has permanently repriced its EVs. The standout in Chery's clearance: the discount drops the Tiggo 4 Urban from $23,990 to $22,490 drive-away, tying it with the Mahindra XUV3XO as the cheapest new SUV in the country. For Chery, clearing 2025 stock with factory bonuses is a way to stay sharp on the showroom floor without permanently resetting list prices.
The sustained discounting reflects the structural reality Meredith and others have flagged: with 67-plus brands fighting over a market of roughly 1.2 million sales that isn't growing, the only way to gain share is to take it from someone else. Aggressive, ongoing incentives are becoming a permanent feature of the Australian market rather than a seasonal event, with real consequences for residual values, finance and how quickly the whole fleet turns over. For buyers, it's rarely been a better time to negotiate.
21 September 2026
Motorists Urged to Fill Up Now as Fuel Prices Surge Again
Australian drivers are being warned to brace for another painful jump at the bowser, with motoring bodies urging people to fill up sooner rather than later. Fresh ACCC data shows average petrol prices across the five largest capital cities rose 39 cents a litre between 20 February and 9 September, while diesel surged 77.1 cents over the same period. As of 20 September, the national capital-city average for unleaded sat at 236.5 cents a litre, up more than 20 cents in a single week, with diesel averaging 284.9 cents.
The RACQ's Dr Ian Jeffreys warned that Asia-Pacific benchmark movements point to a further rise of around 16 cents a litre within a week or two, which would push average unleaded toward 230 cents and diesel toward 280. Commonwealth Bank's head of commodities, Vivek Dhar, went further, suggesting both fuels could climb another 20 to 30 cents in coming weeks after Singapore benchmark prices rose faster than expected. A 30-cent rise would add roughly $18 to filling a typical 60-litre tank. The relief that cushioned motorists earlier in the year is gone: the excise discount expired on 2 August and hasn't been renewed.
The NRMA and RACQ both stressed there are no fuel shortages and urged people not to stockpile, warning that panic-buying only accelerates price rises. But the sustained climb is having a clear knock-on effect: NRMA research now shows just 17% of Australians say they wouldn't consider an EV, while interest in plug-in hybrids has jumped from 41% in 2024 to 58% in 2026. Every fresh surge at the pump strengthens the economic case for switching, a dynamic that has defined the entire 2026 market.
BYD Cuts Atto 1 to $19,990 Drive-Away, Australia's First Sub-$20K New EV
BYD has slashed the drive-away price of its Atto 1 city car to $19,990, making it the first brand-new electric vehicle to break the $20,000 barrier in Australia. The cut undercuts everything in the affordable EV space, including the Geely EX2 and MG4 Urban, and puts the Atto 1 into direct price competition with the cheapest petrol cars on the market, the Kia Picanto (from $19,190 before on-road costs) and the MG3 (from $19,990 drive-away for a limited time).
The Atto 1 is a genuinely small car, measuring 3,990mm long on a 2,500mm wheelbase, putting it in the same size bracket as the Toyota Yaris and Mazda2. But where those petrol hatchbacks have been climbing in price (partly due to NVES penalties on combustion models), the Atto 1 is moving the other way. It's a vivid illustration of how quickly Chinese manufacturing scale and battery cost reductions are dismantling the assumption that electric means expensive.
The timing, landing in the same week as another fuel-price surge, is no accident. For first-car buyers and budget-conscious households watching petrol climb past $2.30 a litre, a sub-$20,000 EV with negligible running costs is an increasingly compelling proposition. The move also helps BYD bank NVES credits it can use to offset any future penalties across its broader range, making aggressive entry-level pricing a rational strategy rather than a loss-leader.
Cheap EVs Now Outsell Budget Petrol Hatchbacks in Australia
A genuine turning point in buyer behaviour: the latest sales data shows Australians are now choosing cheap electric cars over the budget petrol hatchbacks that have defined first-car buying for decades. The electric-only BYD Atto 1 and Geely EX2 are climbing the charts at the direct expense of petrol staples like the Mazda2 and Toyota Yaris, reversing the long-held assumption that price-conscious buyers stick with combustion.
The numbers are striking. The Geely EX2, on sale only since late July, sold nearly 2,000 units in a little over a month and captured close to 38% of the entire light-car segment in August alone. That's nearly double the August total of the MG3, still the best-selling light car for the year but down almost 11% on 2025. The Toyota Yaris hybrid, meanwhile, has fallen nearly 30% year-to-date. On price, the tide has turned too: the Atto 1's $23,990 list price (now $19,990 drive-away) undercuts both the Mazda2 ($27,290) and Yaris ($29,190).
Two forces are driving the shift. Chinese brands are pumping out affordable EVs on fast, cheap production cycles, while legacy manufacturers face NVES penalties on their petrol models: Mazda raised prices across its range including the Mazda2, and Toyota made the Yaris hybrid-only in 2024, ditching its cheaper petrol variants. The result is that the cheapest new cars in Australia are increasingly electric, a reversal that would have seemed fanciful even two years ago and one with real implications for how the entire entry-level market is valued and financed.
Toyota's New CEO Details Cost-Cutting Drive to Avoid Nissan's Fate
Toyota's recently appointed CEO Kenta Kon has detailed a sweeping cost-cutting program aimed at reducing the break-even point across the company's model range, as the world's largest carmaker works to avoid the financial trouble now engulfing rivals like Nissan and Volkswagen. Speaking to Automotive News, Kon said Toyota would target items as small as door handles and seat designs so new models pay for themselves sooner. "Breakeven volume is a very important key performance indicator for us, but what we're seeing now is an upward trend. We have to bring it into a downward trend," he said.
Toyota's profit margins have been squeezed since 2024, and Kon, who helped trim the company's overheads during the global financial crisis, is expected to draw on that experience again. Part of the answer is new manufacturing technology: Toyota has invested in gigacasting, the single-piece body-moulding technique pioneered by Tesla and Xiaomi that can cut vehicle weight by up to 20% while lowering production cost and complexity. The first Toyota vehicle using the technique, a Lexus-badged EV, is due in 2028, with production beginning in China before potentially returning to Japan.
The context makes the urgency clear. Toyota remains Australia's market leader but is down more than 20% year-to-date, its lead over BYD has narrowed dramatically, and the brand has already flagged that price rises are coming as NVES penalties tighten from 2027. Squeezing cost out of every component is how Toyota hopes to keep its cars affordable enough to defend that lead against aggressively priced Chinese rivals, without sacrificing the margins it needs to fund the transition. It's a delicate balancing act, and one every legacy manufacturer is now grappling with.
14 September 2026
Kevin Rudd Calls for Revival of Australian Car Manufacturing on National-Security Grounds
Former prime minister Kevin Rudd used a National Press Club address on 10 September to call for the revival of Australia's defunct car-manufacturing industry, framing it as a matter of sovereign capability and national security.
Speaking as global CEO of the Asia Society, Rudd described the closure of the local industry as "one of the most shortsighted acts of economic vandalism in recent decades" and "a sovereign capability we are sorely missing." He argued that advances in production technology and the EV revolution have paved the way for carmaking to return.
Rudd's speech, titled "The Complacent Country," argued Australia has drifted from "Lucky Country" comfort into complacency and now faces strategic, economic and technological pressures of an order unprecedented since the postwar era. He identified car manufacturing as one of seven sectors where government and industry could collaborate to build world-class capability and capitalise on AI-driven growth. The last Australian-built Holden rolled off the line in October 2017, months after Toyota closed its Melbourne plant, while Ford ended local production in 2016.
He isn't alone in the call. Shadow industry and sovereign-capability minister Andrew Hastie has made similar comments, giving the idea rare cross-party support. Whether it translates into policy is another question entirely: reviving a domestic car industry would require enormous capital, a supply chain built largely from scratch, and a compelling case that Australia could compete with the very Chinese manufacturers now dominating its market. But the fact the conversation is happening at all, after years of treating the 2017 closure as final, reflects how much this year's fuel crisis and China's rise have reframed the national conversation around industrial resilience.
Ford Extends Warranty to Seven Years as Chinese Brands Reset Expectations
Ford Australia has extended its new-vehicle warranty to seven years, backdated to cover all new and demonstrator vehicles with a warranty start date on or after 1 September 2026. The move brings the Blue Oval into line with Kia, Hyundai, GWM, MG, Geely and a growing list of rivals, and applies across the entire range including the Ranger, Everest, Mustang, F-150, Transit and incoming models like the Transit City and Bronco.
There's a catch in the fine print. The standard warranty remains five years with unlimited kilometres; to unlock the extra two years, owners must have all scheduled servicing performed at one of Ford's 220 authorised centres in Australia. Skip a dealer service, and the coverage reverts to five years. It's a common structure among brands offering conditional extended warranties, designed to keep customers within the dealer service network for longer.
The timing is telling. Long warranties were once a differentiator challenger brands used to overcome consumer hesitation; now they're becoming table stakes, driven largely by Chinese newcomers offering seven years or more as standard. For established players like Ford, matching that coverage is increasingly about not being left behind, not standing out. It's another example of how the competitive pressure from Chinese manufacturers is reshaping the terms on which every brand sells in Australia, not just the sticker price.
Forthing Pitches Brand-New EVs at Used-Car Buyers
Chinese newcomer Forthing believes the sharp pricing of its first Australian model could tempt second-hand buyers into a brand-new car instead. Speaking this week, Forthing national manager Shaun Garrard argued the $36,990 drive-away Taikon 5 offers a compelling alternative to used vehicles at similar money: "You get a seven-year, 200,000-kilometre warranty. You get eight years on the battery, for the price of what some legacy brands have as used cars."
The pitch reflects a genuine market shift. Australia's flood of affordable Chinese cars isn't just pressuring established new-car brands; it's now overlapping directly with used-car pricing, giving second-hand buyers a real reason to reconsider. The Taikon 5, a mid-size SUV offered as a range-extender hybrid (from $36,990 drive-away) or full EV (from $38,990), is the cheapest mid-size electric SUV on sale in Australia. Forthing, part of China's Dongfeng Motor Group and distributed locally by Ateco, currently has 20 dealers and plans to reach 35 by year's end.
There's a caveat Forthing itself acknowledges: as a brand with virtually no history in Australia, its future resale values are an unknown, which is precisely the risk a used-car buyer might weigh against the appeal of a new-car warranty. Still, the strategy highlights an important dynamic. With more than 240,000 used vehicles changing hands in private sales, according to AADA figures, any new brand that can credibly divert even a slice of that demand toward new cars taps a large, previously untouched pool of buyers.
Geely Reveals 425kW Electric Sports Sedan for Under $27,000
Geely has taken the wraps off the Galaxy TT (badged simply "TT" in some markets), an electric sports sedan that pairs genuinely high-end performance and technology with a startlingly low price, starting under $27,000 in China. The dual-motor Ultra flagship produces a combined 425kW and sprints from 0-100km/h in a claimed 3.8 seconds, with chassis tuning by Lotus (now part of the Geely empire) and a "Handling by Lotus" badge to prove it. Geely even claims a Guinness World Record for the longest continuous wet-surface drift, covering more than 46km.
The specification sheet reads like a car costing several times more. All versions use an 800-volt architecture with CATL batteries capable of 6C charging, adding nearly 500km of claimed range in around 11 minutes. Range tops out at 725km on China's lenient CLTC cycle (roughly 518-527km under the tougher WLTP standard), and the interior packs a 15.4-inch touchscreen, a 25.6-inch augmented-reality head-up display, and available LiDAR paired with Nvidia's Thor-U chip delivering 700 TOPS of processing power. The car drew more than 20,000 pre-orders in its first fortnight on sale in China.
An Australian launch isn't locked in, and Geely's local arm says the TT isn't on its short-term schedule, but it hasn't ruled it out either. Given how quickly Geely has expanded its Australian range, and the pattern of Chinese brands rapidly localising their standout global models, a right-hand-drive TT within a couple of years looks plausible. The bigger point is what it signals: the technology and performance once reserved for premium European sedans is being pushed into mass-market price brackets, and that has profound implications for how established brands justify their pricing.
Chery Confirms Omoda 4 and Omoda 7 for Australia in 2027
Chery has confirmed two more models for its Omoda sub-brand in Australia, with the Omoda 4 and Omoda 7 both due in showrooms in the first half of 2027. The additions continue the Chery Group's relentless expansion of its local presence, now spanning Chery, Omoda, Jaecoo, and the incoming Lepas and iCaur brands, with Freelander and Jetour also lined up for 2027. It's an extraordinary rate of model and brand proliferation from a single parent company.
The Omoda 4 is a small SUV aimed at younger buyers at the bottom of the brand's range, set to take on the Hyundai Kona and Chery's own Jaecoo J5, while the Omoda 7 is a mid-size SUV pitched against the Toyota RAV4 and Jaecoo J7.
Both will make their in-person Australian debut at the Everything Electric Sydney show over 18-20 September, ahead of first-half 2027 launches, and both are expected to sit below the Omoda 9 flagship ($61,990 before on-road costs) with the electrified powertrain options that have become standard for new Chinese entrants.
For anyone tracking the Australian vehicle parc, the steady drumbeat of Chery Group announcements captures the market's central data challenge. Each new model and sub-brand brings its own model codes, VIN structures, variant naming and specification data that insurers, financiers, workshops and fleet operators must all accommodate. What was a handful of Chinese nameplates three years ago is now a sprawling and fast-growing ecosystem, and the pace shows no sign of slowing into 2027.
7 September 2026
Historic Milestone: Electric Vehicles Outsell Petrol Cars for the First Time
August 2026 delivered a moment that will be written into the history of the Australian car market: battery-electric vehicles outsold petrol cars for the first time ever. A total of 27,078 EVs were delivered during the month, up a remarkable 169.4% year-on-year, giving electric vehicles a record 24.9% share and pushing them past petrol for the first time on record. It's the fourth consecutive month EVs have held at least a 20% share, a threshold first crossed in May during the fuel crisis.
The overall market was strong, with 108,760 new vehicles delivered when Tesla and Polestar figures are combined with VFACTS data, up 4.9% on August 2025. The Tesla Model Y was the best-selling vehicle overall with 6,414 deliveries (across the five-seat and new three-row Model Y L), ahead of the Toyota RAV4, HiLux, Land Cruiser Prado and Ford Ranger. Every one of Australia's eight best-selling EVs in August was built in China, including the Tesla models, which are produced at Giga Shanghai for right-hand-drive markets.
FCAI chief executive Tony Weber described the result as evidence of a significant structural shift, while again stressing that charging infrastructure must keep pace, particularly on highways, in regional areas and for motorists without home charging. Whether this milestone marks a permanent tipping point or is still partly inflated by the fuel-crisis surge in orders remains debated, but the trajectory through 2026 has been relentless: EV share has climbed almost every month, and petrol's decades-long dominance has now been broken.
China Supplies Record 40% of All New Vehicles as Five Chinese Brands Crack the Top 10
The August data confirmed another record for Chinese manufacturing dominance of the Australian market. China-sourced vehicles reached 43,882 deliveries, or 40.3% of the total market, up 88.9% on the same month last year. Japan followed at 24,892 deliveries (22.9%) and Thailand at 15,658 (14.4%). China first overtook Japan as Australia's leading vehicle source back in February, and the gap has widened dramatically since.
Within the VFACTS numbers, five Chinese brands (BYD, GWM, MG, Geely and Chery) finished inside the top 10, recording a combined 26,610 sales, or 26.4% of the market. Toyota remained the overall leader with a 19.5% share, but BYD held second for the fifth month running, and Tesla vaulted to third on the back of a 162.6% year-on-year jump. Chinese manufacturers also supplied five of the 10 best-selling individual models: the BYD Sealion 7, Chery Tiggo 4, Geely EX5, GWM Haval Jolion and Zeekr 7X.
The pattern is now firmly established: every Chinese brand in the top 10, plus Tesla, grew year-on-year, while nearly every established Japanese, Korean and American brand went backwards. Chery narrowly missed the top 10, sitting 11th but comfortably ahead of Isuzu Ute, which itself outsold long-time top-10 fixture Mitsubishi despite offering only two models. The reshaping of the Australian market by Chinese manufacturers is no longer a trend to watch; it's the defining reality of the market.
Mitsubishi Revives the Pajero, But Sticker Shock Awaits
Mitsubishi revealed the fifth-generation Pajero in Tokyo on 2 September, reviving the iconic nameplate after a five-year absence, and Mitsubishi Australia has confirmed local pricing that represents a significant jump over its predecessor.
The range opens at $68,490 before on-road costs for the five-seat GLS, rising to $69,990 for the seven-seat version, $79,990 for the Exceed and $84,990 for the flagship GSR. Drive-away pricing tops out around $90,000.
That's up to $19,400 more than the outgoing Pajero Sport, which started at $51,540, and pushes the new Pajero into Toyota Land Cruiser Prado territory ($73,200) while sitting well above the Ford Everest ($58,990) and Isuzu MU-X ($49,900). The new model moves to a ladder-frame platform derived from the Triton and is built in Thailand rather than Japan. It's powered by a 2.4-litre twin-turbo four-cylinder diesel, now meeting Euro 6d standards for the first time via AdBlue, with 3,500kg braked towing (up 400kg on the Pajero Sport) and Mitsubishi's Super All-Wheel Control system. Both five- and seven-seat layouts are offered across four grades, with first deliveries due in December.
The pricing is a bold bet. Mitsubishi is wagering that the emotional pull of the Pajero badge, combined with its 10-year warranty, can justify a price premium at a time when Chinese rivals like the GWM Tank 500 (from $65,990 drive-away with a new 3.0-litre diesel) are offering more metal for less money. With Mitsubishi's Australian sales down more than 20% year-to-date, the Pajero's success or failure will be an early test of whether heritage nameplates can still command a premium in a market increasingly driven by value.
"Australia Already Has Enough Utes": Peak-Ute Debate Reignites
As a wave of new utes prepares to land, from GAC, Hyundai, Chery's Stockman and the JAC Hunter, the industry is openly questioning whether the market can absorb them. CarsGuide reignited the "peak ute" debate this week, noting that despite all the new entrants, ute sales remain down in 2026, with the 4x4 segment falling 13.6% through the first eight months of the year. The argument is simple: more brands fighting for a shrinking segment means everyone gets a smaller slice.
The debate isn't new. Former Toyota Australia sales boss Sean Hanley declared Australia had reached "peak ute" back in January 2025, a notable position from the man who oversaw the HiLux's enduring success and introduced the Tundra locally. Not everyone agrees: some manufacturers argue the opportunity lies in new powertrains rather than new nameplates, pointing to the BYD Shark 6 as proof that a plug-in hybrid ute from a brand with no ute heritage can still become a genuine sales force. The implication is that innovation, not simply more diesel dual-cabs, is where the growth sits.
The tension captures a broader dynamic in the Australian market. The ute segment has been one of the most stable and profitable corners of the industry for a decade, but it's now being squeezed from two directions at once: overall demand is softening as fuel costs and electrified alternatives reshape buyer behaviour, while the number of competitors continues to climb. For the traditional leaders, the Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux, defending share against both electrified newcomers and a crowded diesel field is becoming harder by the month.
Vehicle-to-Grid Explained as Government and Industry Push to Unlock It
With EVs now outselling petrol cars, attention is turning to what those millions of parked batteries could do for the energy grid. Vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology, which allows an electric car to send stored power back into the grid rather than just draw from it, is being described as the final step in fully unlocking the potential of EVs in Australia. It's a form of bidirectional charging, a family of technologies that also includes vehicle-to-load (V2L) and vehicle-to-home (V2H).
The appeal is straightforward economics. V2G lets owners charge their EVs when power is cheap (overnight or free from rooftop solar) and sell the energy back to the grid during expensive peak periods. Given Australia has some of the highest rooftop solar uptake in the world, and a typical EV battery can store roughly three days' worth of average household energy, the potential is significant. The federal government has shown keen interest as part of its energy policy, recently committing substantial investment toward a V2G network through the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA), and power giant AGL has launched a trial paying EV owners to feed energy back.
The roadblocks are real, though. Many manufacturer warranties don't yet cover V2G use, as rapid energy transfer on incompatible vehicles can accelerate battery wear, and most brands, including BYD, Hyundai, Kia, Tesla and Zeekr, currently warn against unapproved setups. There's also ongoing debate about which safety protocols should apply, with the newer ISO 15118-20 standard considered safer but needing time to be fully implemented locally.
Manufacturers are now actively reshaping warranties and running trials with energy providers, and full-scale V2G uptake is expected within the next couple of years as regulation and warranties catch up. For fleet operators in particular, the prospect of depot-based EVs generating revenue while parked adds a compelling new dimension to the total cost of ownership equation.
31 August 2026
Chery Confirms iCaur as Its Fifth Australian Brand, Targeting the Off-Road Crowd
Chery has confirmed it will bring a fifth brand to Australia, with off-road marque iCaur set to launch in early 2027. Its first model, the boxy V25 electrified SUV, will make its Australian public debut at the Everything Electric show in Sydney from 18-20 September, ahead of showroom arrivals next year. iCaur joins Chery, Omoda, Jaecoo and the incoming Lepas under the group's local umbrella, with two more Chery-linked brands (the JLR-partnered Freelander and off-road specialist Jetour) lined up for 2027.
Known as iCar in China (renamed for export after a trademark clash with Apple), iCaur trades on retro, upright styling that borrows visual cues from the Land Rover Defender, Mercedes G-Class and Toyota Land Cruiser. The V25 measures 4,636mm long and sits on a 2,820mm wheelbase, a touch larger than a Toyota RAV4, but underneath it uses a monocoque body with independent suspension rather than the ladder-frame chassis of a hardcore off-roader. Overseas, it's offered as a full electric or range-extender hybrid, though the Australian powertrain and pricing are yet to be confirmed. iCaur will be led locally by Kate Gillis, former GM of Peugeot and Citroen in Australia, and will open standalone showrooms distinct from its sibling brands.
The confirmation underlines just how aggressively the Chery Group is scaling in Australia. Five brands from a single parent, each with its own showrooms, dealer networks and data footprint, is an extraordinary level of expansion for a manufacturer that barely registered here three years ago. For anyone tracking the local vehicle parc, the proliferation of sub-brands, each with distinct model codes and VIN structures, is fast becoming one of the defining data challenges of the market.
Hyundai Confirms Body-on-Frame 4WD and Ute Onslaught
At its 2026 CEO Investor Day in Seoul, Hyundai laid out an aggressive expansion into body-on-frame SUVs and pick-ups as part of a plan to lift group sales 35% to 5.55 million vehicles worldwide by 2030. President and CEO Jose Muñoz confirmed the brand will move into tougher, off-road-capable segments it has historically left alone, referencing the recent Boulder and Crater SUV concepts and pointing to a rapidly growing customer base for rugged vehicles.
Muñoz described the mid-size pickup opportunity as "enormous", calling it one of the largest and most profitable segments in the industry, and confirmed Hyundai's body-on-frame ute will launch before 2030. The broader plan is sweeping: more than 100 new or substantially refreshed products by 2030, a 1.27 million-unit increase in global manufacturing capacity, and more than 25,000 robots deployed across Hyundai factories by 2028. For Australia specifically, the brand has repeatedly signalled its incoming ute will skip diesel entirely in favour of petrol-electric or range-extender power, a bet that the market will have moved on by the time it arrives.
The confirmation matters because it puts another established, well-resourced player squarely into the ute and large-4WD segments that Chinese brands like BYD, GWM and Chery are also targeting hard. The Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux have owned this space for a decade, but the competitive field is about to get significantly more crowded, with electrified powertrains increasingly the point of differentiation rather than diesel capability alone.
Mitsubishi Locks in Pajero Reveal for 2 September, Australian Arrival by Christmas
Mitsubishi has confirmed the fifth-generation Pajero will make its global debut on Wednesday 2 September, reviving one of the brand's most iconic nameplates after a five-year absence. The new model is due in Australian showrooms before the end of 2026, a remarkably quick turnaround, and will effectively replace the discontinued Pajero Sport in the local range. Both five- and seven-seat variants are confirmed for Australia, with government homologation data indicating four grades: GLX, GLS, Exceed, and top-spec GSR.
The new Pajero is expected to ride on a ladder-frame platform derived from the Triton, sharing much of its mechanical package including a 2.4-litre twin-turbo four-cylinder diesel producing around 150kW and 470Nm, paired with Mitsubishi's Super All-Wheel Control system. It slots into a fiercely contested segment against the Toyota Land Cruiser Prado, Ford Everest, Isuzu MU-X and the returning Nissan Patrol. A hybrid version has been confirmed but isn't expected until around 2030, with a hybrid Triton taking priority in development.
The timing is critical for Mitsubishi, which has been one of the hardest-hit Japanese brands in Australia. Sales fell 17.9% in 2025, one of the largest declines among Japanese marques, and the slide has continued into 2026 as Chinese rivals undercut its ageing lineup. The Pajero's return, with sharper pricing than the Prado and Mitsubishi's 10-year warranty, is a genuine attempt to reclaim ground in the large-SUV segment, which remains one of the more resilient corners of the market.
Nissan and Mitsubishi Alliance Heads Toward a Break-Up
One of the Japanese industry's longest-standing partnerships is showing serious signs of strain. With the 10-year "lockup" period on Nissan's stake in Mitsubishi approaching its end, analysts suggest Nissan may offload part or all of its 34% holding, acquired in 2016 for around ¥240 billion ($2.1 billion) under then-chairman Carlos Ghosn. Nissan remains mired in a global financial crisis, posting a $7 billion net loss for the year to March 2025 and a further $4.7 billion loss for the year to March 2026. Selling down Mitsubishi could provide much-needed capital.
The original logic of the alliance, collaborating on model development for faster speed to market and cost efficiencies, has largely failed to deliver. SBI Securities analyst Koji Endo said the cooperation between the two "wasn't enough to support their earnings", adding that staying on the current path "won't produce new technology or business models." Early joint projects like the Mitsubishi eK X and Nissan Sakura electric kei cars had some success, but the broader synergies never materialised at scale.
For Australia, both brands are already under pressure, with Nissan down more than 30% and Mitsubishi down more than 20% year-to-date as Chinese competitors reshape the market. A formal break-up would leave each to navigate the transition alone or seek new capital partners at a moment when scale and shared development costs matter more than ever. It's a reminder that the competitive pressure from Chinese manufacturers is not just reshuffling the Australian sales charts, it's straining alliances at the very top of the global industry.
Changan Confirms Its Own-Brand Australian Launch, Bringing Mazda's EV Partner Into the Open
Chinese state-owned giant Changan has confirmed it is preparing to launch under its own badge in Australia, spanning both its mainstream Changan brand and luxury Avatr arm. While unfamiliar to most Australians, Changan is already deeply embedded here: its long-running joint venture with Mazda builds the recently launched Mazda 6e and incoming CX-6e, both riding on Changan-derived architecture closely related to its Deepal models, which are already sold locally through Inchcape.
That existing relationship is exactly why the move is significant. Changan-badged versions of shared vehicles are expected to undercut their Mazda equivalents on price, putting a Japanese brand in direct competition with its own manufacturing partner. The luxury Avatr brand, in which battery giant CATL and Huawei are key partners, will play a premium role similar to Zeekr within Geely or Denza within BYD, with a right-hand-drive Avatr 07 already spotted testing in Melbourne. Changan's local recruitment drive points to a factory-backed operation, though most analysts expect a launch in late 2026 or 2027.
Changan's arrival brings the total number of Chinese-origin brands operating or confirmed for Australia to well beyond 25. For a market that buys only around 1.2 million vehicles a year, the sheer pace of new entrants (spanning mainstream, luxury, off-road, and existing badge products) is unprecedented, and every new brand adds another layer of complexity for the businesses that need to identify, price, and service them.
24 August 2026
Changan Confirms Australian Launch, Bringing Mazda's EV Partner Out of the Shadows
Changan, one of China's biggest state-owned automotive groups, is preparing to launch under its own badge in Australia, with a local hiring spree across recent months pointing to a factory-backed operation covering both its mainstream Changan brand and its luxury Avatr arm. While the name is unfamiliar to most Australians, Changan is already deeply embedded in the local market: its long-running joint venture with Mazda builds the recently launched Mazda 6e and the incoming CX-6e, both of which ride on Changan-derived architecture closely related to its Deepal models.
That existing relationship is exactly why the arrival matters. Changan versions of shared vehicles are expected to be priced below their Mazda-badged equivalents, which puts a Japanese brand's product directly in competition with its own manufacturing partner on Australian showroom floors. Changan already sells here indirectly through Deepal, distributed by Inchcape (Subaru's local distributor), and its Avatr luxury brand, in which battery giant CATL and Huawei are key partners, will play a premium role similar to Zeekr within Geely or Denza within BYD. A right-hand-drive Avatr 07 has already been spotted testing in Melbourne.
No firm launch date has been confirmed, but the depth of local recruitment suggests the groundwork is well advanced, with most analysts pointing to a late-2026 or 2027 arrival. For a market that already hosts more than 25 Chinese-origin brands, Changan's entry, spanning mainstream, luxury and existing Mazda-badged product, adds yet another layer of complexity to an already crowded and fast-moving field. It's a reminder that the Chinese expansion into Australia is far from finished.
Geely Founder Steps Back as Chinese Giant Reshapes for Global Growth
Eric Li (Li Shufu), the billionaire founder of Geely, stepped down as chairman of the group's Hong Kong-listed flagship, Geely Automobile Holdings, effective 18 August, handing the role to long-serving executive An Conghui (Andy An). Li, appointed honorary chairman for life, remains chairman of the parent company, Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, and remains the controlling shareholder, so his influence over the sprawling empire endures. An has been with Geely since 1996 and takes the chair as the company pushes a long-term goal of generating two-thirds of its sales outside China.
The reshuffle isn't a distress signal. Geely reported record first-half revenue of RMB 173.6 billion (around $25.75 billion), up 15% year-on-year, with core net profit up 46%. Overseas deliveries more than doubled to 474,228 vehicles in the first half of 2026, and monthly exports passed 100,000 for the first time in June. Management framed the change as "de-familialisation", a deliberate move from a founder-driven startup to a mature business run by professional systems and teams, as part of its broader "One Geely" consolidation, which recently absorbed Zeekr and integrated Lynk & Co.
For Australia, the significance lies in what Geely has become. The group now owns or controls Geely, Zeekr, Volvo, Polestar, Lotus, Lynk & Co and holds a stake in Mercedes-Benz, and its Australian presence is expanding rapidly across several of those badges. A leadership transition built explicitly around overseas growth signals that markets like Australia, open, tariff-free and receptive to Chinese product, will only become more central to Geely's strategy in the years ahead.
Used EV Market Swings from Shortage to Oversupply in Weeks
In a striking reversal, the used electric vehicle market has flipped from red-hot demand to oversupply in the space of a couple of months. The AADA's latest Automotive Insights Report shows used EV sales fell 8.3% to 1,637 units, the largest drop of any fuel type, even as the broader used market saw listings climb 4.9% to 299,147. Just weeks earlier, used EV stock had been evaporating within 30 days as fuel-crisis buyers scrambled for electric alternatives. Now supply is building faster than demand can absorb it.
The swing reflects how quickly the fuel-crisis-driven surge has normalised. When petrol spiked above $2.50, and diesel cracked $3 earlier in the year, used EV interest exploded, with sales more than doubling month-on-month at the peak. With fuel prices now easing back and the excise relief having run its course, that panic-buying urgency has faded, leaving dealers holding more electric stock than the market currently wants. Retained values, already under pressure, are likely to soften further.
Overall, used car listings rose while sales dropped 3.6% to 206,804, and average days-to-sell hit a new low of 42.7, signalling motivated sellers and bargain-hunting buyers. Hybrid sales edged up 0.6% while petrol and diesel both declined. For anyone tracking residual values, whether for finance, insurance or fleet remarketing, the used EV story is a cautionary one: demand driven by an external shock can reverse just as fast as it appeared, and a segment can go from undersupplied to oversupplied in a single quarter.
Analysts Declare Australia a "Showcase" for the Japan-to-China Power Shift
Fresh market analysis this week framed Australia as a global showcase for the automotive industry's transition from Japanese to Chinese leadership. Through the first seven months of 2026, total registrations rose just 1.6% to 740,156 units, confirming a mature market with limited underlying volume growth. But beneath that flat headline, the composition is transforming at speed: electric vehicles now represent 13.3% of the market year-to-date, with EV sales up an extraordinary 77.5% on the same period last year.
The brand story is even more dramatic. BYD has overtaken Tesla as Australia's EV market leader, with sales up 112.6% to a 33.9% share of the electric segment. Tesla, despite losing the top spot, still grew 38.9%, while Kia ranks third after a 29% rise. The analysis notes that a market once dominated by Tesla and supported by established Japanese and Korean brands is being reshaped by broader model availability, aggressive pricing from Chinese manufacturers, and renewed demand for the Tesla Model Y.
The "showcase" framing captures something real. Australia's open market, absence of local manufacturing to protect, and lack of tariffs on Chinese vehicles have made it a proving ground where the global shift in automotive power is playing out faster and more visibly than almost anywhere else. For businesses that depend on understanding the local fleet, the message is that the Japan-to-China transition isn't a distant trend; it's happening in Australian driveways right now.
Chery Adds New Stockman Variant as Chinese Ute Assault Intensifies
Chery has confirmed a new variant for its upcoming Stockman diesel plug-in hybrid ute, broadening the range of Australia's first diesel PHEV ute ahead of its launch. The Stockman, named through a public competition that drew more than 20,000 entries, pairs a 2.5-litre turbo-diesel with an electric motor for a combined 350kW and 800Nm, and is positioned squarely against the BYD Shark 6, Ford Ranger PHEV and GWM Cannon Alpha PHEV.
The expansion signals how seriously Chinese brands are taking the Australian ute segment, traditionally the stronghold of the Ford Ranger, Toyota HiLux and Isuzu D-Max. Chery has already engaged Australian engineering firm Premcar, known for its work on Nissan Patrols and Navaras, to tune the Stockman's ride and handling for local conditions, a notable investment for a brand that previously argued its vehicles didn't need Australia-specific tuning. It's part of a broader pattern: GWM is launching its big new 3.0-litre diesel Cannon Alpha in September, and BYD continues to expand its Shark 6 range.
The timing matters because the ute market is under pressure. The 4x4 dual-cab segment has been sliding through 2026 as fuel costs and electrified alternatives reshape buyer behaviour, yet it still accounts for roughly one in five new vehicles sold. Chinese brands are betting that plug-in hybrid utes, offering low running costs without sacrificing towing or payload, can win over traditional diesel buyers. Every new variant and nameplate entering the segment adds to the data complexity faced by insurers, financiers and fleet operators, who need to identify and value an ever-wider range of ute configurations.
June VFACTS: Australia Smashes All-Time Monthly Sales Record with 140,058 Deliveries
June 2026 has rewritten the record books. A combined 140,058 new vehicles were delivered, the highest monthly total in Australian automotive history and the first time the market has cleared 140,000 in a single month. The previous record of 134,171, set in June 2017, has been comfortably surpassed. Total sales were up 9.9% year-on-year, boosted by the EOFY rush, fuel price anxiety and an unprecedented wave of competitive product.
FCAI CEO Tony Weber didn't hedge. "The Australian automotive market has shifted on its axis during the first months of 2026. This year is likely to represent a significant turning point for the Australian automotive industry." Weber pointed to global uncertainty, Middle East conflict and fuel price volatility as factors that have "sharpened consumer interest in vehicles that reduce exposure to fuel prices," but acknowledged that part of the EV growth "would appear to be a permanent structural shift."
For the half year, 631,581 new vehicles have been sold, up 1.2% on the same period in 2025 and the second-highest H1 figure on record. Petrol sales fell 29% in June to 34,717 units. Diesel dropped 18.4% to 31,789. Hybrids rose 35% to 20,741. Plug-in hybrids surged 158% to 16,068. The composition of the Australian fleet is transforming month by month.
BYD Falls Just 243 Sales Short of Toppling Toyota
The closest any brand has come to knocking Toyota off the top of the Australian sales charts since the Holden era. BYD delivered a record 18,881 vehicles in June, up 131.5% year-on-year. Toyota held on with 19,124, down 5.4%. The gap: 243 vehicles out of 140,058. A margin of 0.17%.
BYD was the number one brand in Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania and the ACT. Toyota held its lead nationally by defending its volume in New South Wales, Western Australia and South Australia. BYD's June result was helped by the arrival of the BYD-owned cargo ship Zhengzhou, which docked in Melbourne carrying close to 5,000 vehicles, most sold before the ship left Shanghai. BYD itself acknowledged the result is "a feat unlikely to be repeated for some time."
Tesla Model Y Smashes Individual Model Record: 8,072 Sales in a Single Month
The Tesla Model Y delivered 8,072 units in June, topping the overall sales charts for the second consecutive month and setting a new record for any individual model in a single month. To put that in context: the previous monthly records were Ford Ranger at 7,767 (December 2023), Toyota HiLux at 7,582 (June 2022) and Toyota RAV4 at 6,712 (August 2024). The Model Y beat them all.
The Model Y finished more than 2,000 units clear of the second-placed Ford Ranger (5,999) and the third-placed Toyota HiLux (5,175). Tesla as a brand recorded 8,670 total sales for the month (up 88.9%), catapulting it to fourth in the overall brand rankings, ahead of both Kia and Hyundai, despite selling only two models. The Model Y accounted for 93% of Tesla's Australian volume.
Hyundai CEO Accuses BYD of "Dumping Cars" in Stunning Public Attack
Hyundai Australia CEO and President Don Romano, who also serves as CEO of Hyundai's Asia Pacific Regional Headquarters, launched an extraordinary public attack on BYD this week. Asked whether he was surprised at how quickly BYD had risen up the sales charts, Romano didn't hold back: "I think if I were to lose money and dump cars, and if my stock price was down 40 per cent, I could do the same."
Romano went further, questioning the sustainability of BYD's growth model. "I think there's a big difference between growth at any cost and growth organically, so I'm not surprised. I would be if it was sustainable. We're celebrating our 40th anniversary and we're planning another 40 years, so if they're around in 40 years then hats off to them." The comments reference BYD's falling sales and stock price in China, where the aggressive pricing war BYD instigated has started hurting its own domestic results.
BYD Australia declined to comment. The numbers tell their own story: both brands have sold approximately the same volume year-to-date (BYD around 33,000, Hyundai around 32,000 through May), but BYD is growing at 120% while Hyundai is up a more modest 5%. Whether BYD is genuinely below cost in Australia or simply operating on thinner margins with higher volume ambitions is a question that will define the competitive dynamics of the next 12 months.
China Now Supplies More Than One in Three New Cars Sold in Australia
June VFACTS data confirmed China as Australia's dominant vehicle source, accounting for 46,592 sales or 35.5% of the market. Japan followed at 27,098 (20.7%), Thailand at 23,297 (17.8%), Korea at 14,863 (11.3%) and Germany at 5,731 (4.4%). Chinese-sourced vehicles include not only Chinese brands but also Tesla (built in Shanghai) and Polestar.
The speed of this shift is remarkable. In January 2026, Chinese-sourced vehicles first overtook Japan in a single month. By June, the gap has blown out to nearly 20,000 units per month. For the first half of 2026, China has supplied more vehicles to Australia than any other country by a substantial margin, a structural change that looks permanent.
The newer Chinese brands are scaling fast from small bases. Geely grew 326.6% month-on-month in June. Omoda Jaecoo climbed from 380 sales in June 2025 to 2,541. Zeekr went from 111 to 1,954. Denza, entirely new to the market, delivered 790 vehicles. Four Chinese brands (BYD, GWM, MG, Chery) finished in the overall top 10 for the month, with three more knocking on the door. The brand fragmentation that AADA has been warning about is now playing out in the data.
29 June 2026
Fuel Excise Cut Extended One Month, But Halved from Tomorrow
In a late move that caught most of the industry off guard, Prime Minister Albanese announced the fuel excise relief will be extended for one more month beyond its 30 June expiry, but at half the current rate.
From 1 July, the discount drops from 32 cents per litre to 16 cents per litre and runs until 2 August. After that, the full excise rate of 52.6 cents per litre returns unless further extensions are announced. The Heavy Vehicle Road User Charge will also be reduced by 16 cents for the same period.
The step-down approach means motorists will see prices rise at the pump from tomorrow, but not by as much as originally expected. Unleaded petrol, which has been averaging around $1.65 per litre in June, is expected to push toward $1.80. Diesel, averaging about $1.97, could move above $2.10. The government has costed the one-month extension at approximately $400 million. The ACCC continues to monitor pricing to ensure the remaining discount is passed through.
The announcement came in the same week as a US-Iran memorandum of understanding was signed, raising hopes the Strait of Hormuz could eventually reopen to commercial shipping. Oil benchmarks have already responded, with gasoil (the key diesel indicator) down roughly 17% from 2026 highs. But the peace deal remains fragile, with both sides trading conflicting statements about the timeline for reopening the strait.
BYD Atto 2 PHEV Approved for Sale: Set to Become Australia's Cheapest Plug-in Hybrid
A plug-in hybrid variant of the BYD Atto 2 small SUV has been approved for sale in Australia by the federal government, setting the stage for what could become the country's cheapest PHEV. Pricing hasn't been confirmed yet, but is expected to sit below the $31,990 (before on-road costs) starting price of the existing electric Atto 2, making it cheaper than the BYD Sealion 5 ($33,990) and Chery Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid ($39,990 drive-away).
The Atto 2 DM-i (as it's known in overseas markets) pairs a 1.5-litre naturally aspirated petrol engine with an electric motor. Two battery options are available internationally: a 7.8kWh pack offering 40km of electric-only range, and an 18.3kWh pack delivering 89km. In the UK, the larger battery variant claims a total driving range of nearly 1,000km. Combined output of the higher-spec version is 156kW/300 Nm. BYD Australia hasn't officially confirmed the launch, but government approval for a vehicle that rarely doesn't make it to showrooms is a strong signal.
If it arrives at or below $30,000, the Atto 2 PHEV will directly challenge segment leaders like the Chery Tiggo 4 and Hyundai Kona, which rely on petrol and conventional hybrid powertrains. For BYD, it's another entry point into the Australian market and more NVES credits on a vehicle that's already proven its popularity in electric form.
Toyota Drops Major Hint on Plug-in Hybrid HiLux
Toyota appears to have opened the door to a plug-in hybrid HiLux, with reports firming this week that the RAV4 PHEV GR Sport powertrain could form the basis for a PHEV version of Australia's most iconic ute. The RAV4 PHEV uses a 2.5-litre petrol engine with two electric motors delivering a combined 227kW and all-wheel drive grip, a powertrain that could, in theory, be adapted for the HiLux platform.
Toyota has previously been coy about a hybrid HiLux. When asked about it earlier this year, Toyota Australia VP of Sales John Pappas said the brand would "always make sure it's fit for purpose for that customer type" before committing to a powertrain. The company's stated next step for HiLux electrification has been hydrogen fuel cell technology, with an FCEV pilot program flagged for 2027. But the runaway success of the BYD Shark 6 (which has outsold the HiLux in some months this year), combined with the Ford Ranger PHEV's permanent repricing to $59,000, has changed the competitive calculus.
A mini HiLux, based on the Corolla Cross platform, is also reportedly targeting H1 2027 for launch with PHEV capability. If Toyota does bring a plug-in hybrid to the full-size HiLux, it would complete a powertrain lineup spanning diesel, mild-hybrid diesel, battery-electric and PHEV, giving the brand the broadest ute range in the market.
New-Car Quality Posts Biggest Improvement in 29 Years
JD Power's 2026 Initial Quality Study, based on 78,514 survey responses from new-vehicle owners after 90 days of ownership, has recorded the biggest year-on-year quality improvement since 1997. Reported problems fell from 192 per 100 vehicles (PP100) in 2025 to 175 PP100 in 2026, and the fourth-best result in the survey's 40-year history.
Improvements were recorded across nine of the 10 categories measured, with the sole exception being multimedia and connectivity systems, where "connectivity issues continue to strain customer experience." JD Power Senior Director Frank Hanley noted that the biggest quality gains come from simplicity: intuitive controls, less-intrusive driver assistance systems, and software that works the way owners expect. When technology becomes too complicated, problems rise.
For the Australian market specifically, the findings carry particular weight given the influx of Chinese brands. One of the persistent consumer concerns about new entrants has been build quality and long-term reliability. Data showing a broad industry improvement in initial quality provides a useful baseline, though the JD Power study is US-focused and doesn't break out individual Chinese brands in the Australian context. Local quality tracking remains a gap in the market.
EOFY Closes on Most Competitive June in Australian Automotive History
The 2025-26 financial year ends tomorrow, and June 2026 is shaping up to be one of the highest-volume sales months in recent memory. With 67 brands competing in a market that's essentially flat year-to-date (up just 0.1% through May), the level of discounting, bundled offers and finance deals has been extraordinary. Electrified vehicles are widely expected to push past 50% of June sales for the first time.
The deals tell the story. BYD is offering 1.88% comparison rate finance or $3,000 cashback. Geely is at 0.88% over 36 months. Toyota is bundling $7,500 deposit bonuses with the bZ4X. Ford has permanently cut the Ranger PHEV to $59,000 drive-away. Hyundai has permanently slashed $8,000 off its EV range. BMW is matching GST-equivalent savings across its X range. Nissan is pushing the Ariya at $53,990 drive-away with a free home charger. Subaru has cut EV prices by up to $4,000.
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