The ‘Conquering Car’: Technology, Symbolism and the Motorisation of Australia before World War II*

The process of motorisation in Australia has received little attention from historians. This is surprising given Australia's rapid adoption of the motor car, and its long‐held position as one of the most motorised nations on earth. By examining the economics of car ownership, the uses to which vehicles were put, and the symbolic status of the motor car within Australia's cultural frames of reference, this paper seeks to explain the speed and enthusiasm with which Australians took to motoring in the years before World War II.