Key stats: 2025-26 financial year
- Average car loan size: $37,346
- Average monthly car loan repayment: $844
- Average car loan interest rate: 12.72% p.a.
- Median car loan interest rate: 10.99% p.a.
- Total number of cars in Australia: 22,305,347 (Jan ’25)
Australia is a country of wide expanses, so having a car to get from A to B is essential for millions of Aussies. In fact, at 779 vehicles per 1,000 people across the country as of 2021, we’re in the top ten globally for car ownership rates.
As such, there’s plenty of valuable insights to be mined from digging deep into the data. Savvy has compiled its own primary car finance data, as well as useful secondary sources, to gain a better understanding of where car sales and loans currently sit in Australia.
How many car loans are there in Australia?
- The value of personal fixed term loans for road vehicles sat at $4.744 billion as of Q1 2026
- This is slightly down on the all-time highs of $4.894 billion in Q2 2025 and $4.889 billion in Q3 2025
- There were 22,305,347 registered motor vehicles in Australia, as of 31 January 2025
The value of new car loan commitments in Australia remains high as we enter 2026, but is slightly lower than the figures seen in the middle of 2025. At $4.744 billion, it’s higher than all bar four quarters in the last ten years, but those quarters came between Q4 2024 and Q3 2025, having peaked at $4.894 billion in Q2 2024.
Total registered motor vehicles by state/territory of registration
What is the average car loan repayment in Australia?
- The average car loan taken out through Savvy in the 2025-26 financial year was $37,346
- The average new car loan over this period was $51,417, while the average loan taken out for a used car over the same timeframe was $33,257
- The average monthly repayment on a car loan taken out through Savvy was $844, with an average rate of 12.72% p.a.
- The median monthly payment was $689, based on a loan size of $31,703 and rate of 10.99% p.a.
- Average interest rates ranged from 9.80% p.a. on new car loans to 17.47% p.a. for bad credit car loans
| 2025-26 | Loan amount | Loan term | Interest rate | Monthly repayment | Interest payable |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All car loans | $37,346 | 5 years | 12.72% p.a. | $844 | $13,318 |
| New car loans | $51,417 | 5 years | 9.80% p.a. | $1,087 | $13,827 |
| Used car loans | $33,257 | 5 years | 13.43% p.a. | $764 | $12,585 |
| Bad credit car loans | $30,905 | 5 years | 17.47% p.a. | $776 | $15,649 |
| Interest rates based on average rate available for each profile type through Savvy in the 2025-26 financial year. These aren’t necessarily reflective of the rates you’ll receive on your car loan. Calculations are for illustrative purposes only and don’t include costs such as loan fees, motor vehicle duty or other government charges. | |||||
The differences between the average new and used car loans can be explained simply like this: new cars are typically more valuable, so a larger loan is generally required, while insurers will often offer interest rate discounts for brand-new vehicles. Borrowers who’ve had credit issues in the past will also face higher rates, while borrowing ranges can be more restrictive (depending on your profile).
Interest rates stayed relatively steady in the second half of 2025, with the RBA’s national cash rate sitting at 3.60% by the end of the year. However, we saw the rate quickly spike to 4.35% by May. This means that rates were higher in the second half of the financial year compared to the first.
What cars are Australians buying?
- Toyota accounted for more than one in seven cars financed through Savvy in 2025-26
- The Ford Ranger was the most popular model bought through Savvy
When it comes to car models, utes dominated Savvy’s sales figures. The Ford Ranger was comfortably the most popular car financed through Savvy, as it was throughout Australia in 2025-26, while the Toyota HiLux, Mitsubishi Triton, Nissan Navara and Isuzu Ute D-Max made up four of the next five.
Most popular new cars
- GWM and Chery were the equal-best-selling models among new cars, ahead of Toyota and BYD
- The Chery Tiggo 4 was the most popular new model, with the Haval Jolion and Ford Ranger coming second and third, respectively
GWM and Chery shared the crown for the best-selling new car makes among Savvy deals, bucking the national trend set by Japanese giant Toyota. The popularity of these two Chinese manufacturers propelled the Chery Tiggo 4 and Haval Jolion into first and second place among the best-selling new models through Savvy.
Chinese models in general proved popular with Savvy’s new car buyers, with the BYD Shark 6, Haval H6 and LDV D90 all also appearing in the top ten. Notably, there were no Toyota models that featured in the best-selling new car list, with Ford’s Ranger and Everest, Mitsubishi’s Outlander and Triton and the Isuzu Ute D-Max completing the list.
With the 2026 Jolion starting from just $25,790, it’s in a cheaper price bracket than popular small SUV competitors like the Kia Seltos (from $31,250), Hyundai Kona (from $33,700) and Mazda CX-30 (from $34,360). For the H6, which starts from $34,490, it’s the Hyundai Tucson (from $39,100), Mitsubishi Outlander (from $39,990) and Toyota RAV4 (from $45,990) to which it compares favourably from a financial perspective.
Most popular used cars
- There were 1,300,018 used cars sold in H1 2026, 6.6% fewer than in H1 2025 (1,391,227), according to AADA
- Toyota and the Ranger were once again top of the pops among national used car sales for makes and models, respectively
- Mazda, Mitsubishi and Nissan all fared much better among Savvy’s financed used cars compared to new
- The Holden Commodore was still the sixth-most popular choice among customers, despite having not been manufactured since 2017
Used car sales as a whole were down 6.6% in the first half of 2026 compared to the same period in 2025, with only January recording more monthly sales than the year prior. This is reflected in the fact that each of the top ten most popular vehicle makes experienced drops in sales year-on-year. Such a drop can be almost directy attributed to the surge in EV sales across the country over the last six months, which has eaten into the market share of used car sales.
Only luxury brands Audi (+11.5%), BMW (+3.2%) anddirectly Mercedes-Benz (+1.7%) saw growth among the top 20. In terms of models, the ladder-leading Ford Ranger (+3.3%) and Toyota RAV4 (5.2%) were the only top ten models to experience popularity bumps.
As was the case with AADA’s figures, Toyota was far and away the most popular used car with Savvy’s customers, while the Ford Ranger comfortably sat clear of the Toyota HiLux. Used car model sales were dominated by utes, with the Nissan Navara and Mitsubishi Triton making the top five as well. In addition to the HiLux, the LandCruiser and Corolla finished in the top ten, making Toyota the most well-represented manufacturer in the list.
Are Australians keeping up with car loan repayments?
According to Equifax’s Quarterly Consumer Credit Report from the September quarter of 2025, 2.90% of car loans are between 30 and 89 days past due (DPD) and 1.49% are 90 or more DPD, meaning almost 4.50% of all car loans have payments that are more than 30 days overdue.
The total value of these delinquencies has spiked by 24% between the September Quarter of 2024 and the same quarter this year, which speaks to a growing trend of delinquency in the auto loans space. As cost-of-living pressures such as mortgage payments and other personal expenses and debts add up, it's clear that Aussies are finding it tougher to keep up.
A car loan in arrears means there is at least some part of the loan outstanding after the payment date has passed.
How much do cars cost to run in Australia?
- Sydney is the most expensive capital city in Australia for weekly transport costs, at $523 as of Q1 2026
- However, it makes up the biggest percentage of Hobart’s income at 17.4%
While Sydney and Melbourne residents face the highest weekly transport costs of any capital city in Australia by some distance, it’s actually in Hobart where it takes up the highest percentage of people’s income.
According to the Transport Affordability Index from the Australian Automobile Association (AAA), Hobart residents were forking out 17.4% of their payslip towards running their car, well ahead of Darwin (15.8%) in second place. It’s worth noting that transport cost calculations include a wide range of car ownership costs, which can stack up.
Electric vehicle statistics in Australia
- A record number of new battery electric vehicles (BEVs) were sold in Q1 2026, with 34,435 units accounting for their highest-ever market share of 12.3%
- Plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) also registered record new car sales (19,184) and market share (6.8%)
- Electrified vehicles as a whole made up almost 36% of all new car sales for the quarter
- Tesla’s Model Y and Model 3 and BYD’s Sealion 7 were the most popular EVs financed by Savvy customers in the 2025-26 financial year
The March quarter of 2026 produced comfortably the highest number of new EV sales ever recorded in Australia, with the 34,435 units registered across the three months crushing the previous benchmark of 29,299. It also meant that their market share of 12.3% broke the previous record of 9.7% from the September quarter of last year.
It wasn't just EVs that enjoyed a bumper quarter, either. PHEVs were also very popular, with 19,184 registrations over that period. On the flip side, though, hybrids slumped to their lowest sales in 12 months. All three segments combined made up 35.8% of new car sales across January, February and March, which was also a record and only the third time it's exceeded 30%.
The end-of-year electrified vehicle sales data from the FCAI and EVC also showed that this segment has gone from strength to strength in 2025. The 103,270 new battery electric vehicle registrations represent a record total for the third year running, beating out 2024's figures by 13.1%.
Best-selling new EV models: 2025
| Model | 2025 sales |
|---|---|
| Tesla Model Y | 22,239 |
| BYD Sealion 7 | 13,410 |
| Tesla Model 3 | 6,617 |
| Kia EV5 | 4,787 |
| Geely EX5 | 3,944 |
| BYD Atto 3 | 3,861 |
| BYD Seal | 3,784 |
| BYD Dolphin | 3,248 |
| MG 4 | 2,986 |
| Kia EV3 | 2,597 |
| Source: Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries and Electric Vehicle Council | |
Car loans by age of borrower
- Generation Y borrowers took out the largest loans through Savvy last financial year, with the $41,230 average amount just beating out Generation X ($40,182)
- Generation Z borrowed the least, at an average of $31,575
- Gens Y and Z made up 78% of all car loans taken out through Savvy across that period
Being a younger generation with the shortest time spent in the workforce, it makes sense that Generation Y and Z applicants would be more likely to need a car loan than someone from an older generation who’s spent more time building their wealth. This is especially the case as they approach an age where starting a family and buying a house are other big-ticket items.
That’s also why it’s understandable that Baby Boomers borrow the least and make up such a small percentage of Savvy’s approved car loan deals. Approaching retirement (if not already retired) and more likely to be asset-rich than younger generations, taking out a loan is less likely to be on their radar.
The cars that depreciate the most (and the least)
- The model that loses the most value over five years is the BMW X5 xDrive30d M Sport, with a depreciation rate of 54.00% for its 2021 model
- The quickest immediate drop is the LDV T60 Max Pro Dual Cab, whose value halves in just two years but remains steady thereafter
- By contrast, the list of cars that retain the most value is dominated by Toyota, with both the hybrid and petrol Corolla Ascent Sport losing less than 10.00% over five years
- Among electric models, the Mercedes-Benz EQE 300 drops 64.18% over just four years, while the Porsche Taycan Y1A has the best retention over the same period (29.67%)
It’s no surprise to see luxury models high up in the list of cars that lose the most value, given that they come in at a higher starting price that a greater number of Aussies can’t afford. The worst offenders in here are Audi and BMW, with four and three models, respectively. If you’re in the market for a premium car but can’t stomach the price, you could benefit from a heavily discounted price tag by waiting a few years for a used model.
Conversely, the consistent demand for Toyota models means that they’re consistently at the top of any list of cars that retain their value. The Corolla Ascent Sport is a prime example: if you bought a hybrid version in 2021, it could potentially be worth almost 95% of what you paid for it.
However, depreciation is starker when it comes to electric models. With the used EV market still in its relative infancy and prices coming down every year, you’ll see the sharpest declines in value with these vehicles:
At one year old, Tesla’s Model Y and Model 3 are among the best EVs in terms of value retention, but these rates blow out over the next three years. A large part of why this is the case is because of the American manufacturer’s slashing of prices on its models, meaning the older, more valuable versions have now been brought crashing back down to earth.
