April 2022 New Car Wait Times: Part 2

In the first part of our monthly analysis of new car wait times, we detailed the makes and models with the longest wait times, as well as the state of play across the broader market, with the average wait time rising by one day to 124 days last month.

We will now shift our attention to wait times across the different states and territories around the country, as well as the makes and models with the shortest wait times right now. Without further ado, here are the rest of April’s observations.

Wait times across the country

New car buyers in the Northern Territory are those still waiting the longest for a vehicle, with the average wait time remaining consistent at 193 days. The next longest wait times are being seen in Tasmania and Western Australia, where new car buyers are waiting at least five months in both regions, and with momentum driving delays. 

On the one hand, these markets are low-volume markets, so stock is likely being held for Australia’s more populous cities on the east coast. At the same time, these locations saw little disruption throughout the pandemic, with case numbers kept in check, yet as the pandemic now affects these areas we are seeing supply chain bottlenecks as labour shortages become more pronounced.

Elsewhere, wait times across Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria remain largely consistent with results from the month prior, also lending weight to the argument that imports are being directed to these markets just to keep the situation stable at this time.

Makes and models with the shortest wait times

M.G. and GWM are the brands with the shortest wait time across the Australian new car market, with a delay of just 56 days and 65 days respectively. 

Mazda and Mercedes-Benz are tied with an average wait time of 68 days, while an LDV vehicle ordered right now will take approximately 71 days on average before delivery is made.

Although we mentioned in our last report that lockdowns in China are one of the key headwinds for the global economy, including the automotive sector as well, we have yet to witness any impact on wait times for some of the Chinese car brands sold down under. This could be due to the fact that stock has been built up over recent months, and other than M.G., sales are still relatively subdued for these brands. 

Rounding things out, Volvo, BMW and Ford are the only other brands averaging a wait time of around three months or less.  

Three names from March feature once again within the list of the models with the shortest wait times across the new car market. These include the Audi Q5 (50 days), Ram 1500 (50 days) and the BMW X1 (54 days).

Either side of the trio are two first-time inclusions, however, in the Mercedes-Benz S450L, which is a relatively niche model, but one that comes with an average wait time of just 43 days, less than any other on sale right now.

The other model making the top five is the Hyundai Kona, which has an average wait time of 54 days. 

It edges out a number of other models that are only fractionally behind, including the Mazda CX-3 (54 days), Kia Rio (56 days) and the Mazda CX-30 (56 days).

Kia has been the biggest beneficiary in terms of supply chain improvements, with wait times across the brand’s range improving by 11% throughout April. Meanwhile, wait times decreased for companies like Audi, Hyundai, Volvo, Haval and GWM, with wait times down 6% for each brand.

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