Car Production in Australia: History, Peak and Closures

Car production in Australia ended in 2017. Ford closed its Australian factories on 20 October 2016, Toyota stopped building cars at Altona on 3 October 2017, and Holden built its last local Commodore on 20 October 2017. Before that, the industry ran for roughly a century, peaking at about 475,000 vehicles in 1970.

Timeline of Australian car making

Year	Milestone
1896-1899	Herbert Thomson builds a steam car in Armadale, Melbourne
1901	Harley Tarrant builds the first petrol-driven car made entirely in Australia
1925	Ford sets up in Geelong; the first Australian-built Model T follows in June
1931	General Motors acquires Holden, forming General Motors-Holden’s
1948	Holden launches the 48-215, the first Australian-designed mass-production car
1962	The one-millionth Holden is built (an EJ Premier, 25 October)
1970	Output peaks at about 475,000 vehicles
1978	Holden introduces the Commodore (VB)
1992	Nissan closes its Australian assembly lines
2008	Mitsubishi ends local car production at Tonsley (March)
2016-2017	Ford (Oct 2016), Toyota and Holden (Oct 2017) close their factories

How it started: steam and petrol pioneers

Herbert Thomson built a steam car in Armadale, Victoria, in stages from 1896. The Museums Victoria collection dates it to about 1898 and lists a top speed of 25 mph (40 km/h).

In April 1900, Thomson and his cousin Edward Holmes drove it 794 km from Bathurst, New South Wales, to Melbourne. A year later Harley Tarrant produced what is described as the first petrol-driven car built entirely in Australia.

Ford and Holden build the industry

Ford announced its Australian headquarters in Geelong on 31 March 1925, and the first Australian-built Model T followed in June. In 1934 Ford Australia released the coupe utility, the “ute” that became a local icon.

Holden began as an Adelaide saddlery in 1856 and moved into vehicle bodies from 1898. General Motors bought it in 1931, and the 48-215 launched in 1948 gave Australia its first locally designed mass-production car.

Holden’s growth was quick. By 1959 it employed about 19,000 people nationwide, and its one-millionth car rolled off the Dandenong line in October 1962.

Why car production in Australia peaked in the 1970s

Import tariffs and government support made local assembly the sensible choice for most brands, so many makers set up plants. Output reached about 475,000 vehicles in 1970, close to half a million.

Large family cars dominated: the Holden Commodore (from 1978) and the Ford Falcon were the staples of a market built around local manufacturing.

What ended Australian car production

There was no single cause. Commonly cited factors include:

• Falling protection: import tariffs were wound back from the 1980s, exposing a small local industry to global competition.
• Small scale: Australia’s market was too small to give so many factories the volumes that overseas plants had.
• Import choice: buyers moved to imported small cars, SUVs and utes.
• Currency and costs: a strong Australian dollar and high local costs made exports hard.

The closures came in stages: Nissan in 1992, Mitsubishi in 2008, Ford in 2016, and Toyota and Holden in 2017. The Holden brand itself was retired after the company wound up in 2020.

What Australia builds today

Australia no longer mass-produces passenger cars. New cars sold there are almost all imported, although some trucks, buses and specialist vehicles are still built locally in small numbers.

For more on the same story, read our Australian car production overview. For a decade-by-decade look at the cars of the era, see 1970s cars.

Sources: Wikipedia entries on the automotive industry in Australia and on Holden; Museums Victoria collections.

Frequently Asked Questions

When did car production end in Australia?

Ford closed its Australian factories on 20 October 2016. Toyota’s Altona plant closed on 3 October 2017 and Holden built its last Commodore on 20 October 2017, ending large-scale local car production.

What was the first car built in Australia?

The Thomson steam car, built by Herbert Thomson in Armadale, Victoria, from 1896, is generally regarded as the first Australian-built car. Harley Tarrant built the first petrol-driven car made entirely in Australia in 1901.

When did Holden launch its first mass-produced car?

Holden launched the 48-215 in 1948. It is described as the first mass-production car designed in Australia.

When did Australian car production peak?

Output peaked in the 1970s, at about 475,000 vehicles in 1970, according to industry production figures cited on Wikipedia.

Why did car manufacturing stop in Australia?

Several pressures combined: reduced import tariffs, a small domestic market, rising costs, a strong Australian dollar and buyers switching to imports. No single cause is agreed.

Are any cars still built in Australia?

Mass production of passenger cars has ended. Some trucks, buses and specialist vehicles are still built locally in small numbers.