Which cars sell the best in each Australian State…
… and which cars should, in a perfect world?
We buy thousands of cars every single month all over Australia.
With so much cash for cars being offered to you, from Adelaide to Zamia, we often wonder exactly what new models you are buying with all that money.
And sometimes we try and guess.
What sorts of cars would each Australian State be best suited to?
- Just what car should be legion for every Taswegian?
- Is it all Mercedes Benz’s for the Banana benders?
- Which type of cars can catch the spirit of the Cabbage Patch?
- Is there an ideal motor for a Sandgroper?
- What style of fenders epitomise the Top-enders?
- Is it four- or six-seaters for the Crow-eaters?
We’ve considered the stereotypes, the geography, the economies and the culture and here are two cars we reckon are the perfect fit for each State.
Lies, damned lies and statistics
To give a sheen of academic rigour to our idle fantasies we’ve also compared our gut-instinct attributions with the latest figures of new cars sales by state.
(These sales figures are based on comparing 2014 sales by State to national sales and/or 2013 sales. They make fascinating reading by themselves: check them out by State or nationally at the excellent Bestsellingcarsblog.com.)
So you can now test our mythic imaginings against the cold bedrock of reality.
We hope you’ll agree that our suggested cars are somehow closer to the essential truth of each State than those cars that actually sell the best.
Have a look at our suggestions and let us know what you think?
- Victoria
- New South Wales
- Queensland
- Western Australia
- South Australia
- Tasmania
- ACT
- Northern Territory
If Victoria was a car…
… It would be a sporty Jaguar F-type coupe
… Or a stylish BMW i8 coupe
Jaguar F-type coupe
A sporty car for a sporty State
Victorians like to think of themselves as living in the sporting centre of Australia so we’ve gone for a sports car to beat all sports cars.
In Vic you can find the Australian Open, the Aussie Grand Prix, the AFL Grand Final and that extravagant mix of style and sport that is the Melbourne Cup. Half of all the 18 AFL teams are from Melbourne (but you’ll find it very hard to find a single person even half-heartedly admitting to enjoying rugby).
The F-type’s attitude and sense of style make it the perfect sporting car for a sporting State.
This is a car that is as full of itself as your typical Victorian, and, like them, it has every reason to be. After all, its supercharged 3.0-litre V-6 can make 380 horsepower.
BMW i8 coupe
A pronounced sense of style
Fashion and style are as close to a Victorian’s heart as sport is.
The second car we’ve selected to represent the State is unarguably one of the most stylish on the market: the BMW i8 coupe.
All cars, no doubt, set out with the intention of achieving a stylish look, but very few actually succeed. Sometimes there can be a thin line between looking fashionably stylish and looking faintly ridiculous, as any Victorian will be quick to inform you.
The BMW i8 coupe is radical-looking, yet quintessentially classic. It is built from lightweight aluminium and has been designed to slip through the air as gracefully as a model shimmies down the catwalk.
Its sexy, sleek contours and elegant, efficient design mask some state-of-the-art technology and engineering. Under its smooth skin sits a 1.5-litre petrol engine and two electric motors that offer plenty of acceleration without compromising on fuel efficiencies.
Indeed, it is appropriate for the Garden State, one of the greenest in Australia (in terms of grass coverage at least), that the i8 boasts impeccable green credentials of its own: CO2 emissions of just 49g/km.
Back in the real world: new car sales in Victoria
Victorian car buyers have distinctly posh tastes: 40% of national Mercedes and BMW sales take place here.
But they also have some curious tastes: witness their pronounced penchant for Renaults, with half of all national sales being made here.
And they have some predictable ones: Ford is still manufacturing in Geelong so it is no surprise to see its sales perform much stronger in its home State than nationally.
In terms of models it is the Mazda 3 first, followed by the Holden Commodore and the Toyota Corolla. The Mercedes C-Class is 23rd and the BMW 3 Series is 37th: these represent the only top 50 State ranking for these luxury cars anywhere in Australia.
Victorians have have a curious taste in cars… Find out what sells best in Vic: http://goo.gl/lAT7NB
If New South Wales was a car…
… It would be a thrusting Ford Mustang I4 coupe
… Or a rusting VW Kombi
Ford Mustang I4 coupe
A thrusting car for NSW entrepreneurs to be seen in
Most of Australia’s media and business is centred in New South Wales, particularly in Sydney. We reckon the Ford Mustang I4 coupe is the business for the bombastic business community of the State.
Sydney rates itself as the business capital of Australia, and the exquisite handling of the Mustang is ideal for its oversized central business district. Sydney’s CBD is characterised by an abundance of one way streets, a glut of roads that have the habit of bending and curving like a snake in the grass and a discernible lack of even the most basic city grid structure.
The revamped and refined Mustang is sleekly contoured and as turbocharged as the power pitches its drivers hope to deliver. It screams ‘look at me’ as it silently speeds onwards to the next acquisition meeting.
Used VW Kombi
A fried out car for fried out surfers
It may no longer be the van of choice for the modern surfer but there are many who still associate it with the freedom of the road and the draw of the ocean.
New South Wales is far from all CBD and big business: its alternative side is, perhaps, best represented by the VW Kombi and all its kooky charms and countercultural iconoclasm.
It is still the van that the ‘hippie’ surfer is never bored with or takes his board without.
Back in the real world: new car sales in New South Wales
New South Wales is the driver of car sales in Australia: it is the only State with the distinction of selling more cars in the last year than the previous.
Here it is Toyota that is sovereign, Mazda second and Hyundai has nudged Holden into fourth place.
In terms of rising stars it is the Jeep at number 12 (up a whopping 47%) that perhaps points to a ride of the future.
Where models are concerned it is clear that New South Wales sets the scene that the nation follows. Its top 10 models are, with one slight alteration, exactly the same as those for Australia as a whole.
So you have Toyota Corolla, Mazda 3, Toyota Hilux, Hyundai i30 and Holden Commodore leading the pack in the State and the nation alike.
How can both a fried out Kombi and a Ford Mustang be emblematic of NSW? Find out here: http://goo.gl/lAT7NB
If Queensland was a car…
… It would be a sunny convertible Mazda MX-5
… Or a built for comfort Mazda 5
Mazda MX-5
A sunny convertible for the Sunshine State
It’s hard to beat the enjoyment of driving a drop-top on a sunny day, and Queenslanders reckon they have the best place to do this. After all, their number plates all proudly proclaim they live in the Sunshine State.
Despite its moniker inviting a ‘roof down’ drive, there are actually plenty of places you are going to need that roof up: the coastal far north of the State is actually the wettest place in Australia, and Mount Bellenden Ker, just south of Cairns, has an average annual rainfall of over eight metres.
That’s more than enough to rain on your convertible’s parade!
The latest Mazda MX-5 has been designed to update a much loved model that is now over 25 years old. It refreshes its looks but keeps its eye firmly on pleasure rather than pace.
As the second largest State in Australia, Queensland calls for a car that offers a smooth ride. The MX-5 promises impeccable handling, perfect balance and cushioned comfort, so you can go the distance in style.
Mazda 5
Built for comfort for the ‘older’ driver
Another Mazda, and another car that focuses on comfort.
Queensland is where those boy racers of Sydney and Melbourne go as the finish line of life approaches and, let’s be honest, when you hit a certain point in life comfort becomes a priority.
If the MX-5 offered a smooth ride the Mazda 5 gives you about the comfiest drive you can have without taking out a second mortgage for your car.
Perfect for those increasingly aching limbs!
In the real world: new car sales in Queensland
It has been quite a while since the sun shone on a car manufacturer in the Sunshine State and, as a result, import-strong car makers hold sway.
It is Toyota, not Mazda as we suggest, that rules the roost. It has double the market share of its nearest competitors. These are Mazda, followed by Hyundai, then Holden.
Mitsubishi at number five performs significantly better than it does nationally.
In terms of models Queensland is the royal realm of the ute: there are five pick-ups in the top 10 best-selling nameplates. The Toyota Hilux takes the first place, the Mitsubishi Triton lies in fifth, the Ford Ranger and Holden Colorado follow close behind at sixth and seventh, while the Nissan Navara picks up the pace to grab 10th position.
In Queensland #Australia, the Ute is King – Find out why at http://goo.gl/lAT7NB
If Western Australia was a car…
… It would be a vast Toyota Verso
… Or a rugged Toyota Land Cruiser
Toyota seven-seat Verso
A big car for an immense State
The largest State by a country mile, Western Australia gives you plenty of room to breathe (if you can stand the dry, desert air). It is sparsely populated outside the major cities like Perth and Kalgoorlie.
Even in its capital the CBD quickly becomes a ghost town with plenty of space to manoeuvre as soon as the offices and shops close for the day. Perth residents tend to head to Northbridge for their after work fun.
Such a vast, often empty State needs a vast, spacious car to represent it and few are more roomy than the behemoth that is the seven-seat Verso.
This family car offers an aerodynamic exterior to cut through those infamous Perth winds and a seating system that can comfortably carry seven adults. It is most representatively enjoyed in Western Australia, however, with just a driver and plenty of space surrounding them.
Toyota Land Cruiser
A sand-coper for a sandgroper
That vast desert also calls for a hardy vehicle that can cope with all terrains.
Over the years the Land Cruiser has grown in size, price and amenities yet this is one ute that has always lived up to its reputation as being ideal for slogging through the toughest of roads, tracks and uncharted territories.
It packs a mammoth 5.7-litre, 381 horsepower V8 and is equipped with suspension systems engineered to perfection and features such as Crawl Control.
This is a car that thinks it can drive over anything without help from anyone. As such it matches Western Australia’s strong sense of independence and self-reliance.
In the real world: new car sales in Western Australia
Covering almost half the country, yet contributing to only the third largest share of new car sales, Western Australia has seen its car sales dip by a steep 8% in the last year.
Toyota claims a national high market share in Western Australia at 20.7% and Hyundai clambers to its best State ranking in second place. Holden, Ford and Mazda follow but it is the top ten positioning of Jeep that is most remarkable.
Toyota leads the model rankings too, with the Hilux and Corolla driving State sales. The Hyundai i30 is next as the first of three Hyundais in the top ten (with the ix35 in sixth place and the i20 in eighth). The Mazda 3 and Ford Ranger follow in the i30’s dust.
The #Toyota Land Cruiser – a sand coper for a Sand groper? Find out http://goo.gl/lAT7NB
If South Australia was a car…
… It would be a sophisticated Maserati Ghibli
… Or a fuel-sparing but dull Ford Fiesta
Maserati Ghibli saloon
A sophisticated car with a fine vintage for South Australia’s wine growing regions
South of the imaginary Goyder Line, in the lush, green vineyards of the Adelaide Hills, you can find the producers of a large proportion of Australia’s wine and, according to locals, surely the finest, most sophisticated proportion.
Italy is synonymous with sophistication and fine wines so it is appropriate to pluck a model from this country’s motoring vines to represent South Australia. Sophistication does not come much more automotive than the Maserati Ghibli saloon. Maserati may be synonymous with sports cars, but these would, perhaps, be just a little crass. Its saloon car packs style with class, effortlessly marrying sweeping lines, contoured curves and just enough angularity to suggest distinction.
This is a car with vintage and pedigree too. It sports the trademark large grille containing Maserati’s iconic trident badge and its history stretches back to 1967, when Maserati gained cult appreciation by collaborating with Italian designer Giorgetto Giugiaro to create the first Ghibli.
The interior is designed with flair and more than a touch of luxury: for those seeking to portray ultimate style there is nothing that can touch it.
Ford Fiesta ECOnetic
A car that can go a long way for a State that covers a lot of ground
Of course, you have to take the rough with the smooth.
Just about all of South Australia’s population live in its southern half and those that venture north find some long distances to cover across primitive, featureless desert, the odd rocket launching site, vast expanses of dried up lake and, eventually, Coober Pedy, the famous opal mining town.
That’s why a car with supreme fuel economy is going to be called for. We’ve chosen the Ford Fiesta 1.6-litre TDCi ECOnetic. It offers 85.6mpg, sharp steering, plenty of grip and a decent ride.
To be honest, though, it is also slightly boring: just like those swathes of desert can get as you clock up the kilometres.
In the real world: new car sales in South Australia
South Australia is where Holden started as a saddlery manufacturer in 1856, and, in Elizabeth, north of Adelaide, it will continue manufacturing cars until 2017.
It is no surprise, then, to see Holden claiming its home advantage with strong sales. Yet these are not strong enough to hold off the indomitable selling power of Toyota. Mazda follows, and Mitsubishi, also once made here, slips into fourth place.
On the model front the Holden Commodore commands its only State win here and, at number six, the Holden Cruze performs better than anywhere else. Mazda3, Toyota Corolla, Toyoya Hillux and Ford Ranger fill in the gaps.
Is #Holden holdin’ on to top sales in South Australia? Find out http://goo.gl/lAT7NB
If Tasmania was a car…
… It would be a small, British Mini
… Or a charming, old-fashioned Imperia GP
The classic Mini
A car that doesn’t hold much for a sparsely populated State
Tasmania is the smallest state in terms of size and population. It is also, after New South Wales, the second oldest State in terms of European colonisation.
Even its capital, Hobart, is dwarfed by many provincial cities on the mainland. Taswegians have a, perhaps unfair, reputation for still clinging to ‘British’ values, yet it is hard to find a more cosmopolitan crowd than the self-conscious trend setters of Hobart.
It seems appropriate, then, to plump for the iconic BMC Mini for its size, British heritage and recent reinvention by BMW as the trendy MINI.
The Mini is the small economy car that achieved a life of its own as a style icon. It is somehow instantly British and rather cool, despite also being caught in its own time-warp.
Imperia GP
A retro-styled Belgian car for a State with a sense of history
This is an unashamedly quirky choice.
We just love the fact that the sausage in Tasmania is known as ‘Belgium’ for the simple reason that more than a hundred years ago, when World War I broke out, it was deemed wrong to refer to a German sausage. As Belgium had recently been occupied it was given its own sovereignty over these pieces of pork.
And so it remains.
In honour of this respect for the past we have chosen a retro-styled Belgium car: the Imperia GP. It’s never likely to be seen in Tasmania but it just seemed appropriate.
Resurrecting a brand name that’s been dead for over half a century, the GP is a distinguished nod to the past. It’s a plug-in hybrid with a turbocharged 1.6-litre four-cylinder combustion engine. Its perky electric engine has a range of around 44 miles on battery power alone, which should get you far enough on the Apple Island.
It doesn’t just rest on past triumphs, however, with its 0 to 100 km/h time of six seconds in electric mode and only four seconds when in hybrid mode.
The exterior is styled to recall the car’s past glories, yet it is designed to also reflect the trends of the 21st century (like a true Hobartian).
In the real world: new car sales in Tasmania
New car sales were hit hard in Tasmania, down 10% year-on-year representing the largest drop anywhere in Australia.
Mitsubishi puts in its strongest performance in Australia by claiming second place behind Toyota. Hyundai, Holden and Ford follow and, further down the line, Subaru registers a State best in eighth place.
Looking at car models, there is nothing between the Toyota Corolla and Ford Ranger (well, just 19 units in a year, anyway). The Ford Ranger also scores a pyrrhic victory over the Toyota Hilux in Tasmania, the only place it does so.
Other cars that perform better in idiosyncratic Tasmania than the rest of the country include the Mitsubishi Triton in fourth, Hyundai i20 in sixth, Mitsubishi ASX in seventh and the Subaru XV just outside the top 10.
The Mini Cooper is the perfect car for Taswegians. Find out why http://goo.gl/lAT7NB
If Australian Capital Territory was a car…
… It would be a boring Toyota Corolla
… Or it would need to handle the political bends as well as a Mazda 3
Toyota Corolla
An efficient but dull car for a bureaucratic State
In ACT you can find the House of Parliament, stood on a hill surrounded by an interminable array of rings of roads. In this planned city even the lake is purpose built.
Like its politicians Canberra is seen as being slightly plastic, somewhat dull and full of twists and turns (of policy by the elected officials and of roundabouts by its overly prescriptive road system).
The first car we’ve gone for is a Toyota Corolla: a popular choice that often gets the Australian vote, yet a somewhat dull car in all honesty.
It isn’t a fun car by any stretch of the imagination. It isn’t a wildly advanced car even for the technophobe. It certainly doesn’t ooze kerb appeal, and yet it does do the job. It can run for years without ever needing any sort of maintenance, for example, in the same way that cockroaches can survive a nuclear holocaust.
It’s boring but functional: a bit like a bureaucrat.
Mazda 3
A car that can handle the twists and turns as well as a politician
Now this is a fun car to drive, and one many Australians enjoy. The reason we’ve picked it to represent ACT, however, is for its excellent handling.
Now objectively you are going to need this for Canberra to navigate all those roundabouts that the central planning committee decreed were necessary. Metaphorically though politicians need to handle the truth with care, execute policy U-turns on a sixpence and drive legislation through the toughest opposition. They need a car that handles, and the Mazda 3 is just such a car.
The Mazda 3 scores on all four cylinders: it has great tech, excellent driving, a reasonable price and efficiency. It gives you big car features in the compact car class.
In short, it is a car you can trust.
(Maybe we made the wrong choice after all!)
In the real world: new car sales in ACT
New car sales in ACT are much more fragmented than in other places in Australia. Here Toyota holds just 12% market share compared to 18.3% nationally. This doesn’t stop it taking first place, although Mazda at 11.2% is not far behind.
Also engaging in a photo finish are Hyundai in third place and Volkswagen in fourth. There are just 25 unit sales separating them, and this gives Volkswagen its highest position in the country.
Jeep (with a 3.2% market share), BMW (at 2.3%) and Audi (at 2.2%) also over-perform in ACT.
The Mazda 3 is the best-selling model, which is the only place our suggested cars and reality have met in a head-on collision.
The biggest surprise, however, lies in second position: the VW Golf. Its sales are up 10% year-on-year and it leaps up two spots for a podium finish. Also inside the top 20 are the VW Polo and Amarok.
The Hyundai i30 ranks its highest nationally in third place, followed by the Toyota Corolla and Holden Commodore.
The Mazda CX-5 also hits its best ranking in sixth place and the Jeep Grand Cherokee enters the top 10 in ACT, again the only place that this can be seen.
Why is the Mazda 3 perfect for ACT and its politicians? Find out at http://goo.gl/lAT7NB
If the Northern Territory was a car…
… It would be a Toyota Tundra TRD with a bite as sharp as a croc
… Or a Holden Colorado 7: as quintessentially Australian as Uluru
Toyota Tundra TRD Supercharger
A perfect swamp ride with a ferocious bite
Northern Territorians are sometimes known as croc-bait, so we reckon they need a car with a bite of its own. One that can handle swampy ground, rainforest roads and long stretches down to Uluru, yet still look pretty mean in the big cities.
The Toyota Tundra TRD Supercharger is the perfect vehicle for this. It can allegedly do 0-60 in a time of 4.4 seconds, but many road tests have failed to replicate these results. Either way this is a pick-up with more than a little bite in its 5.7-litre V8 engine that can make 504 horsepower and 550 pound-feet of torque.
This is a full-size pickup truck that is able to keep pace with many of the world’s supercars.
This Toyota rocks.
And speaking of rocks…
Holden Colorado 7
An Australian icon as timeless as Uluru
They do things large up north.
A Darwin stubby is much bigger than any other stubby in Australia and Uluru towers over the heart of Australia like an over-sized parent putting its tiny children to bed.
The world’s largest monolith is a sacred site of the Pitjantjatjara and Yankuntjatjara peoples and a symbol of Australia.
In the world of cars one Australian make towers over all others and embodies the spirit of the nation. Since 1948 the concept of an Australian car has been central to Holden’s pursuits and, although the clock ticks ever closer to the end, Holden will remain as symbolic of Australia as Uluru for many years to come.
We know they are not made here but the iconic presence of Holden finds, for us, its closest match in the eternal presence of that monolith that lies in the Northern Territory and at the centre of the nation.
We could have gone for a Commodore or a Torana, but we plumped for the Colorado 7. It is big, it is strong and it has plenty of get up and tow.
Like the Northern Territory it can take city streets, long stretches of dust tracks, red dirt roads, black rock trails and white sand beaches in its stride.
In the real world: new car sales in the Northern Territory
It may cover a lot of ground but, in car sales terms, the Northern Territory is a tiny market.
It is dominated by Toyota: an astounding 38.8% market share is held by Toyota here, representing just about five times the share of Mitsubishi, which, nevertheless, performs unusually strongly up north.
Holden comes in third, while Hyundai, Mazda and Nissan all outsell Ford.
The model rankings continue to play testament to the strength of Toyota: it holds all the top six positions and loses only one place in the top nine. The Hilux leads the charge, above the Corolla and Prado. The Land Cruiser Pickup (in sixth place) and the Land Cruiser Wagon (in eighth) both secure State-best positions.
The Hyundai i20 only manages 11th position and the Mazda 3 drags its tail disconsolately in 12th.
What car best represents the Northern Territory. Find out in ‘If Australia Were A Car’ http://goo.gl/lAT7NB
Fancy a new car?
So there you have it: if Australia were a car…
That’s what we’ve been up to in our spare time.
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