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Australia’s love affair with the ute

Published on June 15th, 2020
  Written by 
Bill Tsouvalas
Bill Tsouvalas is the managing director and a key company spokesperson at Savvy. As a personal finance expert, he often shares his insights on a range of topics, being featured on leading news outlets including News Corp publications such as the Daily Telegraph and Herald Sun, Fairfax Media publications such as the Australian Financial Review, the Seven Network and more. Bill has over 15 years of experience working in the finance industry and founded Savvy in 2010 with a vision to provide affordable and accessible finance options to all Australians. He has built Savvy from a small asset finance brokerage into a financial comparison website which now attracts close to 2 million Aussies per year and was included in the BRW’s Fast 100 in 2015 as one of the fastest-growing companies in the country. He’s passionate about helping Australians make financially savvy decisions and reviews content across the brand to ensure its accuracy. You can follow Bill on LinkedIn.
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The good

The numbers speak for themselves when it comes to the Utes popularity, with the Toyota Hilux leading the way as the top-selling new vehicle for the third consecutive year. When it came to the top-selling cars towards the end of 2018, Utes made up for 18% which is up from 17% in the previous year. Sales for Utes such as the HiLux ended the year on a high note with sales reaching 50,000 with predictions by experts expecting that the Ute market will easily to 200,000 sales.

Despite the car market experiencing a slump of 15% in 2018, car sales for Utes and SUV’s increased. According to data released by Car sales, 4×4 Utes experienced increased sales by 6.3% while 4×2 Ute sales dropped down by 9.5%.

The bad

Although the Ute has increased in popularity it still has a long way to go. The technological aspect of the vehicle still has room from improvement. When compared to its counterparts in the market the technology is still at its most basic level, similar to passenger cars.

There is also the fact that its bulky body could cause a safety hazard, making it hard to see small children who could be lurking about. This issue could be remedied by adding a rear-view camera. It can also feel light when it comes to its handling abilities due to its rear end being suspended on leaf springs.

The rise

The Ranger still remains Australia’s most popular 4×4 Ute with a total of 37248 sales towards the end of 2018. Followed by the Triton holding the third position with just over 20,000 sales and the Holden Colorado in fourth positions with just under 15,000 sales.

Despite a few shortfalls, the Ute still remains popular due to its suitability for Aussie conditions and being able to adapt to various settings. It can equally double up in a farm, construction site, or a suburb area for families that are looking for a vehicle that comes with comfort and ample spacing.

With the recent modifications being added to modern Utes to refine them into vehicles that come with the requisite safety that does not require families to compromise is also one of the reasons that sales have been boosted in the past years. It essentially boasts an all in one vehicle offering unrivaled versatility and practicality to suit various Australian conditions.

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