Q3 used car sales

DASHBOARD USED CAR SALES DROP FOR SECOND QUARTER IN A ROW – BUT PRICES ARE HOLDING FIRM

• SMMT reports used car sales for third quarter fell by 12.2 per cent • Electric vehicles rose substantially but overall market hit by shortage of stock • Fall in sales largely due to stock issues as used car prices hold firm on forecourts

by James Baggott

@CarDealerEd

Used car sales dropped for the second quarter in a row as the shortage of stock weighed numbers down.

Latest official figures from the SMMT show used car sales for the third quarter dropped by 12.2 per cent to total 1.78m.

It’s the first time used car sales transactions for the third quarter have dropped below 2m since 2015.

Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, called on the government to support the motoring industry in the Autumn Statement.

He said: ‘Given the short supply of new cars due largely to sustained chip shortages, a declining used car market comes as little surprise, although it’s great to see a growing number of used buyers able to get into an electric car.

‘The demand is clearly there and to feed it we need a buoyant new car market, which means giving buyers confidence to invest.

‘[The] Autumn Statement is an opportunity for the government to make a long-term fiscal commitment to zero-emission motoring, including adequate public charging infrastructure, which, especially given the economic headwinds, would go a long way to stimulating the market and delivering both economic and net zero progress.’

Used electric car sales bucked the declining trend, rising by 44.1 per cent in the quarter, with 16,775 changing hands.

Used hybrid sales also grew by 2.5 per cent, with 41,479 finding new owners. Plug-in hybrid sales fell by 5.8 per cent, though.

The south-east region, excluding London, saw the most activity in the quarter, with 265,755 used cars changing hands.

Buyers in the north-west were second with 196,560 transactions, followed by the West Midlands in third at 178,824.

Northern Ireland saw the least activity in the quarter, with 56,563 used cars sold.

Co-founder of used car marketplace Motorway Alex Buttle said: ‘It’s not unexpected that used car sales are lower in Q3 this year versus Q3 2021.

‘Last year’s surging demand during the third quarter saw used car sales hit an all-time high as the semiconductor shortage impacted new car availability, and it was unlikely that sales were going to be sustained at that level.’

What Car? editorial director Jim Holder added: ‘The key to a buoyant used market is a healthy new car market, and the more affordable and accessible new electric cars are, the more choice there will eventually be in the used market.’

The demand is clearly there and to feed it we need a buoyant new car market, which means giving buyers confidence to invest.

Last year’s surging demand during the third quarter saw used car sales hit an all-time high as the semiconductor shortage impacted new car availability.

Mike Hawes

SMMT chief executive

Alex Buttle

Co-founder of used car marketplace Motorway

The key to a buoyant used market is a healthy new car market, and the more affordable and accessible new electric cars are, the more choice there will eventually be in the used market.’

Jim Holder

What Car? editorial director

Whilst demand is easing on the inflated levels recorded last year, in reality the market is simply feeling the brunt of the massive dearth in available stock.

Ian Plummer

Auto Trader

Despite the drop in sales, used car prices have remained buoyant, with a slight price drop in October according to trade price valuers Cap HPI.

Used car prices for trade buyers fell by just half a per cent last month, making it the strongest October for over a decade.

‘It’s the strongest October we’ve witnessed since 2007 or 2008,’ pricing expert Derren Martin told Car Dealer.

Retail used car price reporting from the likes of Auto Trader and Motors actually saw the price of cars selling on forecourts rise.

The latest eBay Motors Group Market View said advertised prices on Motors.co.uk went up by two per cent (£343) month on month to £17,154 in October – their highest level since May but only 0.5 per cent ahead of October 2021.

Auto Trader’s Ian Plummer added: ‘Given the current economic backdrop, one would be forgiven for equating the fall in used car sales to a similarly dramatic drop in demand from cash-conscious car buyers.

‘But whilst demand is easing on the inflated levels recorded last year, in reality the market is simply feeling the brunt of the massive dearth in available stock, fuelled by the circa 2.5 million new cars lost over the course of the pandemic. ‘Crucially, our data shows that sales are healthy in age cohorts where the stock is available, with sales of five-year-old cars up 18 per cent on 2019. Put simply, where there’s stock, there’s sales.’ Ford Fiesta

74,000

Vauxhall Corsa

58,000

Volkswagen Golf

55,000

Ford Focus 54,000

Vauxhall Astra

42,000

Mini

40,000

BMW 3 Series

38,000

Volkswagen Polo

35,000

Audi A3 29,000

Nissan Qashqai

29,000

TOP 10 USED CAR SALES REGIONS IN Q3

South-east

265,000

North-west 196,000 West Midlands 178,000 East 173,000 South-west 163,000 York/Humberside 154,000 London 146,000 Scotland 145,000 East Midlands 139,000 Wales 92,000