Hybrid sales double in red-hot car market’s record year, Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries’ data shows

Daniel Newell

The Nightly

3 Min Read

03 May 2024

2023 Toyota Corolla Cross Atmos Credit: Car Expert/TheWest

Australia’s already red-hot new car market has shifted up another gear and is now cruising into uncharted territory.

Sales in April may not have topped the 105,000-plus zenith reached in February and March but it was still a record month — up 18.3 per from a year earlier — and helped dealers reset the bar and achieve the highest-ever year-to-date sales result.

The increase has been supercharged by rising hybrid vehicle sales, which have more than doubled in a year. The low-emission cars now represent almost one in every five new models.

Get the first look at the digital newspaper, curated daily stories and breaking headlines delivered to your inbox.

By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.

Figures released by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries on Friday showed 97,202 vehicles were sold across the country in April, pushing sales to a record 401,654 in the first four months of 2024. That’s up a staggering 50,515 compared to the same time last year.

The results come despite a cost-of-living crisis squeezing household budgets and the risk of higher-for-longer interest rates as the Reserve Bank fights to rein in sticky inflation.

New vehicle sales rose in every major capital last month, lead by South Australia where they skyrocketed 33.5 per cent, followed by Victoria (19.2 per cent), WA (18.1 per cent), NSW (16.9 per cent), Queensland (14.8 per cent) and the ACT (14.5 per cent).

The chamber said demand for new vehicles has been buoyed by an insatiable appetite for SUVs and light commercial vehicles.

SUVs remain the most popular vehicle of choice, with three sold for every one passenger car during the month. At 54,136, they made up almost 56 per cent of all sales.

Passenger car sales came in at 17,314, light commercials at 21,413 and heavy commercials at 4340.

FCAI chief executive Tony Weber said the continued growth in the new car market had helped the automotive industry break 10 record monthly sales results in the past year.

“April’s result highlights strong consumer confidence in purchasing new vehicles, surpassing our expectations and is a testament to consumer choice and the industry’s resilience in a challenging economic landscape,” Mr Weber said.

He said there was also a notable increase in the sale of hybrid and plug-in vehicles as shifting consumer preferences favour more sustainable and efficient vehicles.

Together, they made up 18.3 per cent of the market — compared to 7.5 per cent in the previous year — as demand for battery electric vehicles wanes and now only makes up 6.4 per cent of new sales — a drop from 8 per cent this time last year.

The figures were backed up by analysis released by the National Automotive Leasing and Salary Packaging Association last month that revealed drivers in outer city suburbs are increasingly ditching petrol for electric and plug-in hybrid cars and taking advantage of tax breaks to make the switch.

Toyota remained Australia’s top-selling new car with sales of 20,771 — leaving Ford (8648), Mazda (7301), Kia (6653) and Mitsubishi 5314 in its dust.

Toyota’s RAV4 was the top selling vehicle with sales of 5857, followed by the Ford Ranger (5569), Toyota HiLux (4693), Ford Everest (2400) and Isuzu Ute D-Max (2380).

The insights come as the Federal Government prepares to debate its new vehicle efficiency standard designed to encourage automakers to bring more low-emission cars to the country from next year and cut vehicle pollution.