Australian Car Buyers Face Higher Costs as NVES Reshapes Market
- 19 hours ago
- 2 min read
Australia’s new New Vehicle Emissions Standard (NVES) is already reshaping the car market — and many buyers may end up paying more.
The policy penalises car makers if new vehicles exceed fuel and emissions targets. The government says it will lower prices over time. So far, the opposite is happening.
Several brands have dropped cheaper models because the penalties are too high. Kia has ended V6 petrol versions of the Carnival and Sorento, pushing buyers toward costlier hybrid or diesel options. Ford removed lower-priced Everest variants, lifting prices by about $5,000. Isuzu’s MU-X rose by roughly $7,000.
At Toyota, the shift to greener drivetrains has helped push the price of its cheapest model from about $15,000 in 2020 to nearly $29,000 today.
Industry leaders warn higher prices are coming. Hyundai Australia says NVES will likely drive up new-car prices and push more buyers into used vehicles.
Performance cars are also under pressure. The V8 Mustang is already thousands more expensive, and analysts at Pitcher Partners say emissions penalties could double by the time costs reach customers.
Overseas examples offer a warning. In the Netherlands, Norway, the United Kingdom, and France, emissions taxes have pushed some petrol models out of reach — or off sale entirely. In France, policies under Emmanuel Macron add massive environmental charges to high-emission cars.
Meanwhile, electric vehicle sales are growing slower than expected, leaving buyers stuck between fewer choices and higher prices.
The takeaway: Australians replacing a car may soon face fewer options, bigger bills, or both — and the impact of NVES is only just beginning to be felt.
Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.
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