Belgian motorists overwhelmingly regard the car as essential to everyday life, yet increasingly see it as a luxury they can barely afford. That is the central finding of a European survey commissioned by Cardoen’s French parent group, AramisAuto, which places Belgium among the more cautious markets for electrification and low-emission zone policy.
The OpinionWay study surveyed 7,036 motorists in Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Austria, Spain, and the United Kingdom, including 1,001 in Belgium.
The vast majority need their car
Some 89% of Belgian respondents said they could not travel as they wished without their own car. At the same time, 78% called car ownership a luxury, and 58% said their vehicle had become their household’s biggest budget item.
The tension is not unique to Belgium. Across Europe, the private car remains indispensable for many households outside large urban centers, even as the cost of replacing it becomes more daunting.
But Belgium appears to occupy an uncomfortable middle ground between the more price-sensitive southern markets and wealthier German-speaking neighbors. Belgian respondents said they could put an average of €357 per month toward financing a new car, excluding those who said they could spend nothing.
That is above France at €283 and Italy at €286, but below Germany at €387 and Austria at €443. Cardoen’s press release used a lower Belgian average of €325, including respondents with no available budget, while comparing it with the excluding-zero figures for other countries. The broad ranking remains similar, but the comparison is not strictly like-for-like.
Focus on the monthly installment
The focus on monthly finance also exposes a wider problem. The survey asks what motorists can afford to spend each month on financing a new car, not what that car will cost over its full ownership period.
It does not calculate depreciation, fuel or electricity, insurance, taxes, maintenance, tires, repairs, parking, or resale value. In other words, the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) is a determining factor in the leasing business.
That reflects the way much of the private car market is sold. Carmakers’ offers tend to lead with a ‘low’ monthly installment, while the down payment, contract duration, mileage limit, or final balloon payment are less prominent.
For buyers under pressure, the monthly bill becomes the immediate test of affordability. A cheaper gasoline or diesel car can therefore appear more attainable than an electric or hybrid alternative, even where the longer-term ownership balance might look different.
54% considering EV or hybrid
Belgium’s caution is equally visible in powertrain preferences. Only 54% of Belgian motorists said they would consider an electric or hybrid car for their next purchase, below the seven-country average of 60%. Italy reached 66% and Spain 70%, while Austria was the only market below Belgium at 50%.
That does not mean Belgium is falling behind in electrification overall. Its new-car market has been rapidly electrified through company-car taxation and fleet registrations.
But the survey measures motorists’ personal purchase intentions, making it more relevant to the private market, where price, charging access, and uncertainty over future value remain obstacles.
Low-emission zones produce a similarly divided response. Only 45% of Belgian respondents supported restrictions on certain vehicles entering the city centers of Brussels and Antwerp, compared with 68% in Italy. Italian drivers have long been familiar with limited-traffic zones, which may partly explain the difference.
The Belgian result also masks regional differences. Support was stronger in Brussels, while a majority of Flemish respondents opposed the measures.
Yet the question concerned restrictions on access to city centers in general, rather than a specific future tightening of Brussels or Antwerp LEZ rules. The Brussels subgroup was also small, so the regional split is better read as an indication of sentiment than as a precise measurement.
Refurbished to bridge the gap
Cardoen uses the findings to argue that refurbished cars can bridge the gap between aging conventional cars and expensive new EVs.
Professionally inspected used cars with warranties could appeal to drivers seeking a more predictable replacement. But that is also a commercial conclusion from a survey commissioned by one of Europe’s largest refurbished-car retailers.
OpinionWay, an established research company, says the work followed ISO 20252 standards. Still, this was an online quota survey of motorists rather than a probability sample of all Belgian households. It offers a useful snapshot of how drivers feel in spring 2026, not a definitive verdict on mobility policy or the real cost of owning a car.
Its strongest message is nevertheless clear. For many Belgian motorists, the car is still essential. The problem is that replacing it, particularly with a newer or electrified model, increasingly feels like a luxury beyond reach.
