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Canberra car dealers buck the trend

Spare parts: Canberra dealers buck the trend, Danny Ricciardo, and a pricey Beetle    Dealers in Canberra are reporting modest but encouraging levels of showroom traffic. Picture: Shutterstock The ACT has continued to be the only state or territory in the country bucking the national plunge in new car sales. August sales data shows the ACT is the only jurisdiction staying in the black, while elsewhere around the country it's a sea of red. National car sales are running 20 per cent down on the same eight-monthly year-to-date period last year, and Victoria, with much of metro Melbourne still in heavy stage four COVID lockdown, is suffering a 66 per cent fall in sales year to date. The dealers in Victoria are screaming for help although to date, there's been little government response. The federal industry body wants the industry to reopen "under appropriate COVID-safe protocols", but offers no worka…
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  • 2020-09-26
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Used car bargains few and far between in north Queensland and reprieve is weeks away

Used car bargains few and far between in north Queensland and reprieve is weeks away Used cars are in short supply in regional areas such as Townsville.(ABC North Queensland: Chloe Chomicki) Industry experts say it will be weeks before more used cars hit sales lots in north Queensland. Key points: Dealers and auction houses are struggling to find used cars during the pandemic A halt in new car sales and fleet vehicle turnover means there is less trade-in activity Experts expect there will be a reprieve in late October when imports increase

Since the coronavirus pandemic began, the industry has seen both a lull and a boom in sales.

In recent weeks, however, the ideal bargain has been hard to come by in regional areas.

Townsville used car sales manager Craig McGrath said trade-ins had slowed, meaning less choice for customers.

"Th…

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  • 2020-09-26
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New car sales in Australia slump but luxury brands buck trend during coronavirus pandemic

New car sales in Australia slump but luxury brands buck trend during coronavirus pandemic Overall sales have fallen 20% between January and August but Audi sales have actually increased Audi car sales in Australia have increased despite the coronavirus pandemic. Photograph: William West/AFP/Getty Images   New car sales in Australia have slumped since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, but one sector is bucking the trend – luxury brands.  

Overall sales have fallen 20% as people have lost jobs and income, overseas factories have closed down and the recession has begun to bite.

 

But sales of luxury brands have declined much less sharply and, in at least one case – Audi – actually increased.

Figures from the Australian Automotive Dealers Association and Commonwealth Bank show car sale…

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  • 2020-09-23
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Tasmanian car dealership reports downturn in new-car sales, used cars in ‘tight supply’

Tasmanian car dealership reports downturn in new-car sales, used cars in 'tight supply'

Car sales are down around the country, with about a quarter of a million fewer new cars being sold this year, according to Tasmanian car dealership owner Errol Stewart.

Key points: International car manufacturers are experiencing shortages Fewer new cars are coming into the country resulting in less sales, and fewer trade-in cars at dealerships Second-hand cars offered for sale privately are being purchased by car dealerships

That also directly impacts your chance of picking up a privately sold used car for a bargain price.

Gone, at least in the meantime, are cars by the side of the road with a phone number and asking price scrawled on the windscreen that are offered for private sale.

Car dealers are increasingly buying direct from the public due to trade-in car numbers decreasing and …

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  • 2020-09-14
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Alice Springs Car Dealership sees Pandemic car sales bonanza

Pandemic car sales bonanza By Erwin Chlanda By ERWIN CHLANDA After 45 years of selling cars, partly in Alice Springs including the past seven year, Stephen Rogers (at right) thought he’d seen it all: The start of 2020 was looking not too bad, fitting into the pattern of the industry’s minor ups and downs, February and March usually being quiet. Then COVID-19 struck and disaster seemed inevitable. The opposite was the case: The Federal Government’s string of economic rescue initiatives, starting in April with early releases of superannuation savings, opened a money flood that saw car yards on the North Stuart Highway filling and emptying several times over. No sooner a load of used cars arrives in town they are snapped up, says Mr Rogers. Some people form bush communities are buying two at a time, says another dealer. Unsurprisingly a $6000 car now costs $8000, a result partly of drops in new car purchases in South Australi…
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  • 2020-08-27
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Hyundai Electric Cars – 1800 kilometres in an electric Hyundai Kona

Range anxiety be damned: 1800 kilometres in an electric Hyundai Kona

Hidden charging stations, dodgy mobile connections and long waits are par for the course on an Australian drive, but it's all worth it when the bill arrives.

  Robert Pascoe As the spectre of climate change becomes more threatening and the cost of electric vehicles comes down, more and more Australians are considering investing in electric cars. An EV promises to lighten both carbon footprints and fuel costs but, on this vast continent linked by long stretches of highway, one significant question remains: can an EV comfortably drive the kind of distances that separate our big cities? Between the Victorian lockdowns we put our new electric Hyundai Kona to the test, driving from Melbourne via Canberra to Sydney and back, a journey of 1800 kilometres. The advertised range of the Kona is 440 kilometres, but that's with no sudden braking, no dramatic acceleration (always …
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  • 2020-08-26
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Australian gas supplier signs green hydrogen deal with Hyundai

Australian gas supplier signs green hydrogen deal with Hyundai Utility Jemena has agreed to produce hydrogen gas for Hyundai’s Macquarie Park headquarters in greater Sydney from early 2021. AUGUST 12, 2020 MARIJA MAISCH   The MoU follows formal certification from the Australian Government for Hyundai’s hydrogen-powered Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle (FCEV), the NEXO. Image: Jemena From pv magazine Australia Australia’s emerging zero-emissions vehicle industry is set to receive a boost due to a new green hydrogen supply deal between Hyundai Australia, gas utility Jemena, and equipment supplier Coregas. Jemena has agreed to produce and deliver green hydrogen from its Western Sydney Green Gas project to Hyundai’s Macquarie Park headquarters in greater Sydney – the only permanent hydrogen refueling station in Australia. It will supply hydrogen generated by solar and wind from early 2021. “A lack of critical r…
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  • 2020-08-14
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Mazda zooms into new Melbourne distribution hub

Mazda zooms into new Melbourne distribution hub Frasers Property has secured Mazda Australia as the anchor tenant for a new industrial estate it is developing in Melbourne's north. The car maker will lease a 37,235sq m national parts and distribution facility  within Frasers' 4Ten Epping estate at 410 Cooper Street in Epping on a 10-year term starting in 2021.

It's the second big Melbourne industrial leasing deal struck by Frasers this month, after CEVA Logistics agreed to lease a new 37,307sq m warehouse within its West Park Industrial Estate in Truganina.

Mazda Australia has entered into a 10-year lease for a 37,235sq m national parts and distribution facility.  The Mazda lease comprises a 36,275sq m warehouse, 960sq m office and 140 car spaces. The new facility is expected to be completed in December. Frasers did not …
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  • 2020-03-24
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Motorists warned to buy local or watch car dealerships disappear as regional car yards close

Motorists warned to buy local or watch car dealerships disappear as regional car yards close Westland Autos dealer principal Rob Murison in the last days of the 93-year-old dealership in Kalgoorlie-Boulder.(ABC News: Jarrod Lucas) New figures have revealed a crisis facing Western Australia's regional motor vehicle dealerships, with motorists being warned local car yards could disappear forever.  Key points: 136 motor vehicle dealers' licences have been handed back in regional WA in the past five years, including 18 last year Kalgoorlie-Boulder's oldest car dealership, Westland Autos, has closed after 93 years in business with 22 staff made redundant Regional car buyers say vehicles are cheaper in Perth

Data from Consumer Protection shows 136 motor vehicle dealers' licences have been handed back in regional WA in the past five years.

Eighteen dealerships returned their licences la…

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  • 2020-03-17
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Australians shunning new cars, says car dealer giant after heavy losses

Australians shunning new cars, says car dealer giant after heavy losses Car buyers are steering clear of new vehicles and intead being savvy in buying used vehicles, according to the head of Australia's biggest car dealership group after it recorded a $233 million loss for the last financial year. John McConnell, chief executive of Automotive Holdings Group (AHG), echoed the sentiments of others in blaming the banking royal commission, a flailing national housing market and "broader economic uncertainty" for repelling consumers from shelling out for new cars. New car sales fell to their lowest level in eight years in July.Credit:Nicholas Walker

"If we look at our total results in FY19, we saw private buyer retail drop by 5.4 per cent in volume terms. Our used car sales, over a period which was pretty tough, actually went …

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  • 2020-01-25
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