Just as the supply of new vehicles catches up with demand, leading to an all-time Australian market record in 2024, fresh industrial action at shipping ports around the country is threatening to put the brakes on deliveries of new cars.

Strikes by Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) workers at ports operated by Qube – including Port Kembla, Fremantle, Adelaide, Brisbane and Melbourne – are already crippling the importation of an estimated 35,000 new vehicles by many of Australia’s largest auto brands.

The Australian reports Qube stevedores at some of the nation’s biggest wharves are asking for improved conditions and a 25 per cent pay increase for annual salaries averaging $128,000.

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In a statement issued on Friday, MUA said Qube is “holding their workforce and the community to ransom” by not agreeing to the demands of the dockworkers’ union, which said its workers face “outrageously dangerous fatigue and safety problems”.

Shipping Australia said the protracted strike action, which affects a range of non-automotive industries “will surely begin to cripple” the Australian economy.

In terms of the auto industry, it’s forcing around a dozen ships transporting new vehicles to either remain idle outside ports on Australian’s eastern seaboard or be rerouted to unaffected ports at different parts of the country, causing knock-on effects due to their delayed return and restocking at departure ports.

Many carmakers declined to comment on the matter, but one industry insider who spoke to CarExpert on the condition of anonymity said: “This is one of those stories where media outlets won’t realise how big of a s*&#storm this is until people start complaining on Facebook where their car is.

“We are at the start of a three-month s*&#show and potentially chronic car shortages.

“Calculate all the ships waiting to dock. And then calculate all the subsequent shipments they are running late for once they leave here empty. Shipping companies will prioritise other countries and make Australian suppliers pay a premium [to ship cars here] because of the high risk of disruption.

“We are being held to ransom. In Australia the pirates are on the docks, not on the water.”

Australia’s biggest auto brand, Toyota, said it was impacted by the issue and hoped to reduce delays for customers.

“Toyota has been affected by the industrial action but is working closely with vessel companies to minimise the delays,” a Toyota Australia spokesperson told CarExpert.

The supply delay couldn’t come at a worse time for the Japanese giant, which posted its 22nd consecutive year of local market leadership in a boom 2024 market after reducing wait times for its most popular model, the RAV4, from a record high of up to four years during COVID to just three months.

Toyota was already expecting sales to slow in 2025 – even amid freer supplies – as consumer sentiment declines due to inflation and other key economic indicators, and pressure is put on the prices of many popular diesel utes and SUVs by the federal government’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES).

The NVES will eventually impose penalties on auto brands that don’t meet increasingly stringent fleet-wide CO2 emissions limits.

Ford Australia has told its affected dealers that industrial action by Qube staff at Port Kembla and other ports since early December would impact deliveries of the new-generation S650 Mustang, which were due to take place in January.

At this stage there is no impact on deliveries of Ford’s most popular models, the top-selling Ranger and Everest, because they are handled by another stevedore company. At the height of the previous supply chain crisis, Ford leased a dedicated vessel to expedite the shipment of these in-demand models.

However, the Tosca and Tortugas vessels now carrying Mustangs from North America will be diverted to Melbourne, where they will be subject to quarantine inspection and then ‘transhipped’ back to NSW.

Ford said this and the knock-on effect of similar moves by other carmakers would increase waiting times for the new Mustang.

“Industrial action at ports in Australia has resulted in some delays to the deliveries of customer vehicles,” said Ford in a statement.

“As the situation is evolving, we cannot specify the exact length of any anticipated delays and are working on ensuring vehicles are delivered in as timely manner as possible.

“We are investigating diverting ships as appropriate, along with alternate road transport options. Ford is working with our logistics and shipping partners to identify the affected vehicles and will communicate with customers and dealers with updates as we work on alternative delivery methods.

“We thank our customers for their patience as we deal with the situation.”

In another bulletin to its dealers earlier this month, Kia Australia said the ports impacted most by the industrial action were Port Kembla and the Port of Brisbane, which supplies dealers as far north as Townsville, and that affected ships currently included the Glovis Condor, Glovis Champion and Grand Pace.

It said shipments of other unspecified Kia vehicles from South Korea on ships including the Adria Ace, Glovis Cosmos, Glovis Clipper and Wisdom Ace “are also likely to be delayed for arrival into NSW and QLD” in coming weeks.

Kia said it was working with the shipping lines and its logistics partners “to find alternative options to land these vehicles as soon as possible” and would advise its dealers of revised ETAs ASAP.

Suzuki Australia is also understood to be affected, with a shipment of vehicles sitting off the Queensland coast.

While first customer deliveries of Australia’s first plug-in hybrid (PHEV) ute, the BYD Shark 6, are now taking place this week, some buyers will be affected by the strike action and the delays could prove costly to customers who ordered other PHEVs to take advantage of the fringe benefits tax exemption that expires for novated lessees of vehicles delivered on April 1.

Australian BYD distributor EVDirect says it has thousands of vehicles stuck on the water.