Women have fallen in love with the big utes
Utes are stereotypically the domain of men but women are helping drive the sales dominance of the vehicles.
And they are spending hundreds of thousands on aftermarket customisations to take the vehicles boating, caravanning, jet skiing and touring.
Popular ute models such as the Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux have overtaken sedans and compact cars including the Toyota Corolla and Mazda3 to become the nation’s favourite vehicles.
Sales of dual-cab utes have grown from about 183,000 vehicles in 2013 to almost 240,000 last year, when the Ford Ranger overtook the Toyota HiLux to become Australia’s favourite new car.
Founder of the Rangerettes
Ford club Jane Cartwright said utes were “absolutely not just for blokes.”
“A lot of women like to get out with their kids on a weekend,” she said. “On the weekend we’re all out in the bush, or we’re all down the beach. We’re always doing girls’ weekends away. The relationships it forms are incredible.”
The Rangerettes have almost 4000 members.
Cartwright has spent around $200,000 on her custom Ford.
“A lot of the girls have completely modified their Ford Ranger utes so that you can shower, you can cook a roast,” she said. “We have a massive horse riding community, plus boating, caravanning, jet skiing and touring. A lot are touring Australia solo.”
The Rangerettes won popularity among women who struggled to be included in what Cartwright describes as the “male dominated forum” of traditional four-wheeldrive enthusiasts.
Toyota sales information shows one in seven HiLux customers are female.
Customer data provided by Ford shows that female ute customers were more likely to be younger than male counterparts, with a university education and a white-collar job.
A spokeswoman for Kia, which is preparing to launch its new Tasman ute, said market research shows that almost half of four-wheel-drive utes sold in Australia were delivered to metro areas, and that white collar customers outnumbered tradies.
Though officially women represent less than 15 per cent of ute customers, dealership data may not tell the full story.
Automotive industry analyst Ben Sullivan said thousands of utes were bought by couples every month.
“The big trucks tend to be attributed to men, who will say: ‘That’s my car’,” he said.
“Blokes think they own the car, or say they do, but there are a lot of women out there in them. Just look at the school run. It may well be hubby’s tax loophole too, to give the missus a car.”
Mr Sullivan said utes were growing in popularity with women as they become more relevant to motorist needs.
“One in five cars sold is a dual cab ute. It’s bizarre considering we are an 85 per cent metropolitan population.”