ACCC says Mazda, Kia and BYD improve repairer access in Australia

Event

The ACCC said on 16 September 2026 that Mazda, Kia and BYD had improved access to service and repair information after separate investigations, with the changes falling under Australia’s Motor Vehicle Service and Repair Information Sharing Scheme. The regulator’s framing places the issue squarely in the Australian market and within a mandatory information-sharing system for repairers and registered training organisations. ¹⁶⁸

What changed

For Kia, the ACCC said independent repairers can now access diagnostic hardware and software for $136 a day, compared with an earlier minimum upfront cost of about $9,780. For BYD, the new daily option is $140, whereas the previous structure was $600 a month or an outright diagnostic equipment purchase costing $14,719.60. ¹⁴

Mazda’s change was different in form but similar in effect. The ACCC said Mazda previously required a specific diagnostic device for access to some information, but that information is now available through devices more commonly used by independent repairers. ¹⁴

Our take

In our view, the significance here is less about the headline dollar figures than the fact that the ACCC has tied each change to compliance with a scheme that requires service and repair information to be made available at a fair market price and in a reasonably accessible form. That suggests the competitive issue was not simply cost, but also whether access settings were practical for smaller repair businesses. ¹⁶⁸

One possible implication is that the new pricing and device changes could narrow the gap between manufacturer systems and the tools commonly used by independents. However, the available evidence does not confirm local take-up, pricing stability, or any immediate impact on Australian workshop behaviour, so those effects should be treated as unconfirmed. ¹⁴⁶