Petrol costs have surged in the past few years, hitting the hip pockets of families cruising around in the booming cohort of sport utility vehicles. But there’s no hitting the brakes when it comes to their uptake.

Once the hallmark of soccer mums carting kids around to weekend games, more than 55 per cent of new cars sales in the past year were SUVs. Up from roughly a quarter in 2018, the proportion has steadily climbed every year according to data from the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.

Unshackled from the constraints of supply chain issues, which slowed the delivery of cars during the pandemic, Australians hit top gear last year. More than 1.2 million vehicles were delivered, beating the previous record of 1.18 million in 2017.

Australia’s 10 top-selling cars in 2023 were utes and SUVs.Credit: Joe Armao

And we’re picking up bigger cars. Nearly four out five car sales were SUVs or light commercial vehicles, while passenger vehicles including sedans and hatchbacks accounted for roughly 17 per cent of cars sold. The trusty Toyota Corolla and Hyundai i30, which made the list of top 10 cars sold in 2022, have been driven off the list. In 2023, the top three were utes, and the rest were SUVs.

An empirical glance at the population of soccer mums suggests no drastic increases. At least, not enough to explain why the majority of sales in 2023 were for SUVs. So, why are more people opting for fuel-thirsty giants like SUVs and utes?

Price is often one of the biggest considerations. Given bigger cars tend to be more expensive, and the price of some of the most popular SUV models has continued to climb recently, it might seem strange that demand has stayed strong amid rising cost pressures.

But several things to note here. Firstly, the majority of new car buyers are Baby Boomers who are more likely to have paid off their mortgage and are generally less sensitive to – if not benefiting from – rising interest rates. They may be less sensitive to price increases.

Secondly, while the price of most cars has soared over the past few years (which carmakers justify as a reflection of supply chain issues and rising input costs), some of the biggest proportionate price increases globally have reportedly been for entry-level lighter car models such as the Mazda2 and Toyota Yaris.

Then, there’s the safety factor, which has contributed to some of the disproportionate price movements but is also a key consideration in its own right.