EV sales outpace petrol cars for first time as Australians dodge soaring fuel costs

<p>New record for Australia as more than 27,000 EVs sold in August, driven by the rising cost of fuel and new government policy</p><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/live/2026/sep/04/anthony-albanese-pauline-hanson-actu-union-labor-one-nation-coalition-angus-taylor-ntwnfb">Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates</a></p></li><li><p>Get our <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/email-newsletters?CMP=cvau_sfl">breaking news email</a>, <a href="https://app.adjust.com/w4u7jx3">free app</a> or <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/series/full-story?CMP=cvau_sfl">daily news podcast</a></p></li></ul><p>Electric vehicle sales in Australia exceeded petrol cars for the first time last month as a transformation driven by high fuel prices and government policy encouraging clean car uptake accelerated.</p><p>More than 27,000 EVs were sold in August, a new record for a single month and representing 24.9% of new cars sold. The climate-friendly technology surpassed both petrol vehicles (nearly 26,000 sold) and diesel cars (23,600).</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/sep/04/ev-sales-outpace-petrol-cars-for-first-time-as-australians-dodge-soaring-fuel-costs">Continue reading...</a>