SMARTER INSIGHTS FOR CHANGES ON OUR ROADS

Posted by Cameron McLachlan

Fifth Quadrant discusses what’s new in the AAAA Car Parc tool

Australia’s passenger and light commercial vehicle parc now exceeds 19 million vehicles, up an impressive 14 percent over the past five years, and creating a significant customer base for workshops, parts retailers, and manufacturers.
For aftermarket professionals, understanding what’s actually driving around, and how that’s changing is key to staying ahead.
What vehicles are popular in your postcode? Are utes outpacing sedans? Is hybrid adoption growing in your region?
The AAAA Car Parc Tool, developed by Fifth Quadrant for the Australian Automotive Aftermarket Association (AAAA), helps answer those questions, with the latest update making it even more powerful.

New filters: vehicle segment and subsegment
The latest update takes the existing filters for vehicle segment (for example, passenger, SUV, light commercial) and goes deeper, unlocking subsegments within passenger vehicles and SUVs.
This means aftermarket businesses can now drill down with far greater precision to understand which types of vehicles dominate their local area.
This allows workshops to align tools, diagnostics and service capabilities to their local fleet; while parts suppliers can forecast demand more accurately and fine-tune inventory by vehicle type.

Potential Use Case – In western Victoria, the data shows a surge in utes like the Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger between 2019 and 2024. Workshops can use this to plan technician training and stock relevant filters, suspension components, and towing accessories.

Improved fuel type classification
The tool also now includes expanded filters for fuel type, covering petrol; diesel; battery electric (BEV); hybrid; and Dual Fuel (for example, Petrol/LPG).
This lets users isolate emerging drivetrain trends and track the rise of electrified vehicles down to the postcode level.
This means workshops can identify when to invest in EV safety upgrades or hybrid diagnostic tools, while parts retailers can adjust stock and training based on the local mix of combustion and electric vehicles.

Updated data: January 2024 refresh
In addition to the technical updates, the tool’s dataset now reflects the passenger and light commercial parc as of January 2024, delivering:
• The most current view of Australia’s on-road vehicle population
• Year-on-year comparisons (for example, top models in 2024 versus 2019)
• Improved accuracy and postcode-level granularity
This update ensures that all insights are grounded in the most up to date market realities possible, not outdated assumptions.

Potential Use Case – A parts distributor servicing the Central Coast region sees a 20x increase in BEVs since 2019, led by models like the Tesla Model 3, Model Y, and BYD Atto 3. Armed with this insight, they increase their focus on EV consumables and accessories, while also preparing to support upcoming models.

Practical benefits for aftermarket professionals
These updates are more than technical tweaks, they offer real, day-to-day value for:
• Workshops: predict what’s coming through the door, plan training, and prioritise tool investments
• Parts suppliers: align stock, marketing, and logistics with actual fleet trends
• Manufacturers and brands: support sales planning, distribution, and campaign targeting based on car parc profiles

Want to see it in action?
If you’re already using the AAAA Car Parc Tool, log in now and explore the new filters and updated data. If not, contact the AAAA team to find out how to get access.

This column was prepared for AAAA Magazine by Fifth Quadrant, the AAAA’s partners in the AAAA Aftermarket Dashboard which is delivered to AAAA members each quarter.

For more information about its services, visit www.fifthquadrant.com.au or contact Ben Selwyn on ben@fifthquadrant.com.au