‘A new trajectory’: EVs now almost quarter of Australia’s new car sales as fuel crisis bite…

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‘A new trajectory’: EVs now almost quarter of Australia’s new car sales as fuel crisis bites

More electric vehicles sold in first half of 2026 than whole of last year, new data shows

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Australians bought more electric vehicles in the first six months of 2026 than the whole of the previous year, new data shows, as the ongoing crisis in the Middle East causes uncertainty about petrol prices.

There were 103,855 battery electric vehicles (EVs) sold nationally between January and June, compared with 103,269 in 2025, according to data from VFacts and the Electric Vehicle Council.

Battery EVs as a share of new car sales doubled compared with the same time last year, making up 23.4% of sales in June 2026 compared with 10.3% in June 2025.

Soaring EV sales to shield Australia from fuel shortages

Soaring electric vehicle uptake is materially reducing Australia’s petrol demand, as experts forecast the ongoing global oil crisis could put enough clean cars on the road to leave the country less exposed to future fuel shortages.

Fuel prices hit record highs in March due to Iran shutting off oil exports via the key shipping channel in the Strait of Hormuz, in response to the United States’ missile attack.

EV sales soared in response. There are now about half a million battery-only electric vehicles on the road, which, based on average driving patterns and fuel consumption, are estimated to avoid around 600 million litres of petrol use each year.

Video: Should Australia set an end date for selling ICE Cars?

During 2026 about 200,000 new EV’s will have been sold and public fast charging networks on highways were built to deal with a much smaller number of cars, what happens when everyone hits the road at once during school holidays?!

Neerav from Electrify Everything and Sam from The Driven argue over which companies should actually be paying to fix that lack of charging gap and I get a bit fired up about a rich corporate sector that’s been getting a free ride for years. Australia should set a hard date to stop selling petrol, diesel and hybrid cars.

We look at which EV brands might quietly give up on Australia, and why some famous established car brands just can’t seem to make it work here anymore. We also talk about those annoying warning beeps, bings and bongs in many new electric cars but some manufacturers like the car I’m driving in for this video have much better not annoying software.

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