Covid-19 has had a massive impact on all aspects of life and it has made Australians reconsider one of life’s most important purchases.
Aussies are ditching their plans to buy new cars.
New research from comparison website Finder found many Australians have no plans to buy a new car in the next five years.
A quarter of those surveyed said they would never buy a new car while a further 17 per cent said they won’t buy one for more than five years.
Only four per cent are in the market right now for a new vehicle.
New car sales dropped in October compared to the same month in 2020 despite large parts of the nation coming out of lockdown, according to the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries’ national sales report.
New car sales are on track to crack one million this year, but are still well below pre-Covid-19 levels.
Taylor Blackburn, the personal finance expert at Finder, believes the drop in Aussies intending to buy a new car can be explained by a critical shortage in new cars forcing people to give up on a new ride.
“Inventory has evaporated which is good news for sellers, but not for buyers,” Blackburn said.
“In the current environment, drivers must secure a new car before they sell their current vehicle or else risk being without wheels for months.
“Even at a dealer, the question is no longer, ‘Do you have it in red?’ the question is, ‘How long will I have to wait?’,” he said.
The new-car shortage has been caused by a supply bottleneck for semiconductors, which are used for a diverse range of tasks in cars such as engine mapping, safety tech and infotainment controls.
Toyota is one of the worst affected. It has waiting lists stretching back 10 months for popular models such as the RAV4 Hybrid SUV and the LandCruiser 70-Series ute.
Every car brand in Australia has been affected by the global shortage.
Kia Australia chief operating officer, Damien Meredith, previously told news.com.au the long wait time for new car orders caused by the semiconductor shortage had led to a loss of about 20 per cent of possible sales as buyers get tired of waiting.
Meredith said the best way to keep customers was to be open and honest with them about wait times.
It’s a similar story over at Jeep. The American brand’s local boss, Kevin Flynn, previously explained the company had to recognise the challenges in global manufacturing and the effects they were having on local sales.
“I don’t think we’ve ever had such low levels of stock in the country,” said Mr Flynn.
“The car yards are certainly empty, we just have to work every month to make sure the stuff is coming, we’re getting it prepped, we’re getting it out and supporting the dealers and our customers. We have, in certain models, got fairly lengthy order banks and we just have to keep working to improve that situation,” he said.
Originally published as Aussies putting off buying a new car
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