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The manufacture of the first all-Australian motor vehicle in 1948 not only signified an important moment in the country's industrial development it also produced a brand of vehicle - the Holden. the Holden FX was made, Holden making 10 each day in there manufacuring line.
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In 1951, Holden were manufacotring and average of 100 cars per day.
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In 1953 Holden Release the FJ, which sold for about $1500-$2000 which was about 68 times the average weekly wage. The FJ was the second model of an "all Australian car" manufactured by Holden
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In 1954, Holden's first exports began with sales of the FJ in New Zealand
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By 1955, it was estimated that there were 1 850 000 cars in Australia, and Production had grown fast.
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In 1958, Qantas became the first airline in the world to introduce a regular round-the-world service.
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In 1959, Qantas also offered regular flights to America, London via New York and London via India. The first jet service operated by Qantas was on 29 July 1959 from Sydney to San Francisco via Nadi and Honolulu. On 5 September 1959 Qantas became the third airline to fly jets across the North Atlantic
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Australia's first freeway was completed in 1961 and many major state highways were sealed.
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In 1961 a new type of car was brought into Australia - the MINI, which was the smallest car in Australia at the time.
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By the 1960s, the car had become an essential part of everyday life for many Australians. In 1963, around 35 percent of Australians owned a car.
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In 1966, the final unsealed stretch of the Princes Highway was completed, allowing a fast, smooth, paved car journey all the way from Melbourne to Sydney.
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The National Highway was established by the National Roads Act 1974 when Gough Whitlam was Prime Minister of Australia.The federal government introduced the National Highway Scheme in 1974, which aimed to join all mainland capital cities by a direct, paved highway route. In Queensland, the scheme also linked Brisbane to Cairns and in Tasmania, joined Hobart to Burnie
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In 1974 and Australians began to realise that petrol was not an unlimited resource. Environmental design rules were enforced in the construction of new cars to increase fuel efficiency and limit pollution levels.
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In the mid 1970s, the 'golden age' of car ownership appeared to be over. This was most likely because the cost of Petrol was doubled.
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In 1978, the Westgate Bridge was built across Melbourne's Yarra River, linking the inner and eastern parts of the city with the industrial western suburbs.
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By the 1980s, most Australians considered cars to be a vital part of everyday life. As car ownership continued to rise, however, roads became increasingly congested and pollution levels skyrocketed.
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New energy-efficient, more environmentally-friendly cars were introduced. To lower exhaust emissions, catalytic converters were made compulsory in all new cars from 1986. Catalytic converters reduce the toxic level of emissions by changing carbon monoxide, petrol and nitrous oxide into less poisonous gases.
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Road deaths in the 1980s had fallen somewhat since the previous decade, but were still a source of concern. In order to curb the toll further, governments made seatbelts compulsory for all car passengers and random breath testing (RBT) was introduced to measure the concentration of alcohol in the blood and so reduce drink-driving. Previously, only people who had been pulled over for traffic offences were legally allowed to be breath tested.
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Environmental issues received a lot of public attention during the 1990s. Scientists warned that rising levels of greenhouse gasses were responsible for global warming and climate change. Transport, particularly the motor car, was named as one of the prime contributors. It has been estimated that transport is responsible for one-quarter of the world's greenhouse gas emissions.
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In 1991, there were almost 8 million registered cars in Australia. The increase in car ownership could be attributed a variety of factors, including rising incomes, improved road networks and a change in public perception regarding the declining efficiency of public transport.
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Efforts were made throughout the 1990s to develop alternative ways of powering cars. Solar power and less polluting fuels like methanol, hydrogen and bio-diesel were researched heavily. Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) became a more common alternative fuel
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Huge numbers of cars on Australian roads also led to worsening traffic congestion throughout the 1990s. Many roads in Australian cities had become completely jammed at peak travelling times. Excess time spent in traffic jams is considered to have a significant impact on quality of life for many people. It reduces time spent with family and time for outdoor physical activity. It also costs motorists money in petrol and further increases air pollution.
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Throughout the 1990s, some Australians became increasingly concerned about air pollution from their vehicles and took up more environmentally-friendly modes of transport like walking, cycling and public transport. The widespread use of the internet and the subsequent trend of working from home, was also expected to lead to a decrease in car use
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In the late 90's Qantas was considered to be one of the most safest and secure airlines in the world.
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By the end of the 1990s, the social and environmental problems posed by cars were a prime concern of governments, industry and the public. Improved urban planning, better public transport and continued research into alternative energy were put forward as solutions to be developed in the coming decades.
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In 2001, it was estimated that car ownership in Australia had further increased to 9.8 million - almost one car for every two people
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Jeststar was, established in 2003 by Qantas
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Jetstar started allowing Domestic passenger services began on 25 May 2004, soon after the sale of tickets for her inaugural flight in February 2004.
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It wasn't until the end of 2006 the Major Highways of the Northen Territory, had no speed limit on them.
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2011 Australian Built Holden Cruze SRI V Sedan is one of the newest Holdens made in Australia.
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Today Australia has a wide range of motor Vehicles that have been sold internationally, nearly everyone in Australia now owns a car, and most have come from the biggest manufacturing companies in Australia.
