'Australia remains a challenge': car boss

They've said the quiet part out loud.. For over a year there has been growing tension and stress amongst the established car companies as more and more Chinese brands not only enter the Australian market, but have near-instant sales success.. This has led to several off-the-record, and unsubstantiated, remarks about the 'government support' that helps the Chinese brands and a general angst between the two sides of the industry..

But publicly executives from the establishment have put on a brave face and talked confidently about their future - until now.. Duncan Tait, Group Chief Executive of Inchcape, the distributor of Subaru in Australia, has admitted the brand is facing a "challenging situation in Australia" as sales have plummeted 29 per cent in the first nine months of the year.. Tait explained that Inchcape will need to make major changes to turn around its fortunes in this country, as the landscape continues to shift..

"Australia remains a challenge - our key brand (Subaru) has underperformed, with deteriorating competitiveness in a rapidly-evolving market," he admitted.. "We are taking further decisive action there, alongside our existing restructuring activity.. We are confident these actions will improve our business in Australia over time, but we expect the current challenges in that market to continue impacting our performance there." Inchcape has already announced it is relinquishing the Deepal brand in Australia, handing it over to its Chinese owners, Changan..

In the wake of the company's decision to also drop the Peugeot brand, this leaves Inchcape's automotive portfolio with only Subaru and Foton.. "We continue to focus on ensuring Inchcape has a portfolio of brands aligned with our strategic growth objectives, and I would like to thank Changan for its partnership and wish the brand continued success in the Australian market," said Colin Christie, Managing Director, Inchcape Australasia.. The public acknowledgement of the challenges facing these so-called 'legacy brands' is a first, but Subaru is far from the only brand feeling the pain as the likes of BYD, GWM and Chery accumulate increasing market share..

Hyundai recently announced it has dropped plans to offer the European-sourced Ioniq 3 electric car in Australia, citing difficulty getting it competitive against an array of more-affordable Chinese rivals.. Even best-selling brands Toyota, Ford and Mazda have suffered double-digit sales decline in 2026, while the likes of Nissan (down 33 per cent), Mitsubishi (down 30 per cent) and Volkswagen (down 25 per cent) have all seen their sales plummet.. Such dramatic drops inevitably leads to questions around the long-term plans for these brands that were once favourites amongst Australian buyers..

But with more and more Chinese brands arriving in Australia, the "challenging situation" and "deteriorating competitiveness" of certain brands will become increasingly important to watch, as no brand is guaranteed a place in such circumstances..