Arabic version: أسعار السيارات في إيران تعمّق ضغوط تكاليف المعيشة على الأسر
According to Al Jazeera, Iran’s car market has become increasingly out of reach for households as vehicle prices and maintenance costs rise faster than incomes. Hossein, a 32-year-old marketing specialist in Tehran earning close to 900 million rials, said even a newer domestically made car is beyond his budget.
His 13-year-old Peugeot 206 could sell for up to 10 billion rials, but a Peugeot 207 automatic costs 28 billion rials. A Shahin sedan costs more than 31 billion rials and a Reera crossover exceeds 43 billion rials. After selling his existing car, those purchases would require more than 20, 24 and 37 months of his full salary respectively, assuming prices stayed unchanged and he had no other expenses.
Domestic car prices have mostly climbed 40 to 80 percent since the start of the war, while some vehicles cost more than 130 percent above their September 2025 prices. Tyres, motor oil, brake pads and clutch kits made in Iran have at least doubled in price since last year, with some parts rising more than threefold. The report said domestic vehicles also have generally low safety standards and contribute to high road fatality levels.
Experts cited protected state-linked businesses, limited imports, economic isolation and privileged access as factors keeping prices high while limiting choice. State media figures showed about 233,000 cars were manufactured or assembled in Iran in the first five months of 2026, down from 366,000 a year earlier, while only about 25,000 vehicles were imported. Duties and value-added tax can raise final import prices by up to 200 percent.
Price differences are especially pronounced for higher-end models. A 2026 Toyota Land Cruiser VXR was selling for approximately $287,000 in Iran, compared with about $86,000 in the UAE. At a Tehran car exhibition dominated by Chinese-made vehicles, an XPENG G9 priced at 120 billion rials would take a minimum-wage worker 50 years to buy without spending money on basic needs.
