Australians love their cars and this affair is not likely to end anytime soon. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), there were almost 20 million motor vehicles in the country in early 2018. In a year’s time, the fleet grew by more than 2%.

1. Just Patios
Car Ownership in Australia
Reaches Record Levels

2. Car Ownership in Australia Reaches Record Levels
Australians love their cars and this affair is not likely to end any time soon. According to the Australian
Bureau of Statistics (ABS), there were almost 20 million motor vehicles in the country in early 2018. In a
year’s time, the fleet grew by more than 2%.
That’s not all, however.
A Clearer Picture
Car ownership in Australia has surged over the years. Reports suggested that since 2000, the registered
vehicles went up by over 42%. On the other hand, despite the population boom, the percentage change
within the same period was less than 30%.
Recent data also revealed the same phenomenon. The number of households with no motor vehicle
dropped from 116,122 to 102,949 in 2016.
Meanwhile, during the same period, those who owned at least one vehicle increased. So did households
who had three or more vehicles. In 2017, the number reached a whopping 317,000.
The greatest change of car ownership was among those who possessed two vehicles. In 2016, the
percentage growth was 35.1%.

3. The distribution of ownership is likewise not the same across all territories. For example, in 2016, around
53% of households in Queensland had two or more vehicles. The national average was only 51%.
Meanwhile, those who lived in New South Wales are less likely to buy a vehicle than those who lived in
Tasmania.
Growth Factors
The car ownership in the country may be high for two reasons. One is affordability, especially for small
economy cars. A report from Fleet Care revealed that a Toyota Corolla could cost almost $23,000 in
Australia, which made it significantly cheaper than in the UK and Germany. This may explain why the
brand is one of the most popular in the country. Due to the price, people are still buying them despite
low wages.
The other factor is aging. Most cars around the world can last for more than five years. In the United
States, the average age of vehicles on the road is 11 years. In Australia, it’s 9.5 years.
With the growing demand for vehicles, other industries also benefit from it. These include carport
builders, whose expertise is necessary since the design needs to abide by council regulations. It can also
boost the growth of maintenance services and vehicle accessories.

4. Sources:
http://www.justpatios.com.au/
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/inquirer/if-car-ownership-keeps-growing-australians-will-be-
outnumbered/news-story/92f65fe440421d9ede7155e895db723c
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/grogonomics/2017/aug/01/australians-still-love-
buying-new-cars-even-when-wage-growth-is-low
https://profile.id.com.au/australia/car-ownership?WebID=120