Why is Australia’s Outback full of abandoned cars?
Ever been to the Outback? Even if not, you’ve likely seen it in plenty of films and TV shows. You could easily be itching to journey there, tempted by the prospect of seeing its stunning natural scenery up close.
This vast, little-populated expanse of central Australia is associated with many things in the public mind. Think kangaroos and emus hopping to their hearts’ content and imposing mountains jutting out of sandy plains.
However, those who actually visit the Outback also see something else the travel brochures didn’t tell them about: masses and masses of abandoned cars. The roadsides are littered with their mangled carcasses, but why are there so many of them – and what can BLAZE’s Outback Wreckers do about them?
The treacherous terrain of the Outback
If you’ve spent even just a bit of time in the Outback, you might already have more than a few inklings. It’s hard to overstate how sparse much of the rugged landscape here really is – fewer than 5% of the nation’s Aussies live in the Outback!
A road trip here will take you onto the Outback Way – but don’t be fooled, it’s not the glam, super-fancy motorway its name implies. It’s a somewhat more disjointed string of asphalt roads and dirt tracks. Yes, that’s right – it’s not even fully paved, despite longstanding government pledges to rectify that discrepancy.
Aussies and tourists driving through the Outback can find it quite the adventure, let’s just say – and not always the exciting Crocodile Dundee kind. The unkempt state of the roads (where they exist) can put driver and vehicle alike at serious risk of blowing a gasket.
At worst, this can result in a serious accident. Even if you emerge from a damaged vehicle unscathed, you could have to wait hours for a mechanic to arrive and get it working again. Often, abandoning it can seem the ‘least worst’ solution.
Why else do people leave their cars in the Outback?
Of course, there’s no way to be sure of all the different reasons. As majestic and characterful as many of the cars (even in their wrecked form) may seem, they don’t always give much away. It’s not hard to imagine how else they may have found themselves ‘orphaned’, though.
Cars can be extortionate to run and insure, so dumping them can appear to be a convenient way to get rid of them. Yes, such dumping is technically illegal – but, amidst the many others in the Outback, the car would be ‘hidden in plain sight’.
As acknowledged earlier, the Outback itself can also be the problem. In the blistering heat, a car can turn into an oven. So, the occupants may have to exit the vehicle for their own safety.
The unforgiving ground conditions can also dangerously disorientate drivers. One case in point is the German national Carolina Wilga – who, in the summer of 2024, survived 12 days in the Outback after abandoning her car there.
In a statement after her rescue, Carolina explained: ‘I lost control of the car and rolled down a slope. In the crash, I hit my head significantly. As a result of the accident, I left my car in a state of confusion and got lost.’
Wrecked cars become pop-culture juggernauts
Locals have complained about the Outback’s epidemic of abandoned cars, seeing them as unsightly and dangerous. Though many of these charred, metallic hulks have accumulated significant rust, others in central Australia’s more arid environs remain in a remarkable state of preservation.
In essence, then, many of the cars haven’t simply rusted to nothing. Nonetheless, moving them can be prohibitively expensive, given the dauntingly high prices quoted by towing companies. In the case of those vehicles originally deposited decades ago, some Outback residents have come to see them as enchanting historical relics.
Even those jettisoned cars since reduced to little more than skeletal frames are far from worthless today. It’s not unusual to hear of people salvaging some of the scrap for their own use – including selling it on to make a profit.
That’s exactly what the stars of the new BLAZE reality series Outback Wreckers have been doing. The team scour western Australia’s Kimberley region for overlooked gems, all while coming up with clever ways to rein in spending and maximise profit. You don’t want to miss it!
You can catch Outback Wreckers on BLAZE – whether online, on mobile, or on Freeview, Sky, Freesat or Virgin. All eight episodes will also be available on demand.