is buying a car tax deductible

Short answer: if it’s a personal car, no—buying a car isn’t tax-deductible in Australia. For a business, you may claim the business-use portion of the car’s cost over time via depreciation (and, when available, instant asset write-off), not the private-use bit.

Keep a logbook or solid usage records to prove the percentage, and remember cars are subject to the ATO’s car depreciation limit and possible FBT or LCT rules.

Employees generally can’t deduct the purchase itself; they can only claim eligible running costs using the logbook or cents-per-kilometre method, not the sticker price.

If you’re GST-registered, you may claim the business-use share of GST (subject to the car limit), but only for eligible vehicles.

In short: personal—no; business—maybe, proportionally, with paperwork and caps attached. Get advice tailored to your setup before you start spending like it’s EOFY.