June 2018 has been a good month for the retail used car market although trading conditions appear to have been harder thanks to the weather and the World Cup.
Pricing a car correctly is intricately linked with stock turn and profitability – we asked dealers how they hit the sweet spot
Used car prices on Auto Trader declined by 0.7% in May as the number of online searches for diesel-fuelled cars dipped below 50% for the first time.
The National Association of Motor Auctions has reported that average used car prices at auction rose by 5% during April as “good wholesale prices led to well-stocked forecourts”.
Cox Automotive has indicated that the used car market remains “strong” against the backdrop of falling new car registrations.
Cazana has launched a vehicle valuation tool enabling dealers to make “instant price decisions” based on the current retail market.
Car dealers turning to the used vehicle market amid falling new car sales have sparked at 9.4% increase in prices at auction, according to data published by Cox Automotive.
Demand for used diesel vehicles has remained strong in March with SUVs leading the charge, according to Cap HPI.
Electric vehicle used values rose by 41% during Q1 of 2018 as the overall average used car value rose by 5.3%, according to Autorola.
Part-exchange vehicles posted strong performance at auction during March to deliver a boost to car dealers at the end of Q1, according to new figures from Cox Automotive.
Strong competition for used car stock saw prices rise by an average of 1.7% at auction, according to the monthly BCA Pulse report.
The average price of a used car sold at auction rose by 16.7% year-on-year in February, according to The National Association of Motor Auctions (NAMA) car auction data.
The average price of a used car reached its second-highest level on record for remarketing specialist BCA as demand remained high across its 24 auctions centres and online platform during February.
Cox Automotive has said that sales of used diesel vehicles have continued to contrast those of new diesel cars, despite a year-on-year price rise less than a third of those attracted by petrol counterparts.
Used values rose by a further 1% in February as demand for new cars softens, according to Cap HPI.
Premium used cars struggled to achieve top values at auction as hammer prices painted a “subdued” picture during January, according to the National Association of Motor Auctions (NAMA).
Auto Trader has revealed that the Mini Cooper was the fastest selling used car in January followed by the Fiat 500X.
Used vehicle values rose by 7.88% as BCA auctions processed record volumes of car sales in its auction sites across the UK during January, its monthly Pulse Report has revealed.
Aston Barclay has reported that sales of diesel-powered ex-fleet cars have reached a two-year high value at its UK auction sites – indicating the fuel still holds appeal to traders and consumers.
Auto Trader sees used diesel car prices rise by 3% Used diesel car prices rose by 3% as the average price of a used car rose 6% industry-wide, according to Auto Trader’s Retail Price Index. Despite a fall in the share of searches by fuel-type targeting a diesel vehicle, 71% In November 2016, to an annual low of 53% in January, diesel car sales via the online marketplace generated an average value of £14,405 in last month, compared to the £12,775 realised by the average used car sale. The Auto Trader Retail Price Index analyses data from over 500,000 trade used car listings every day, as well as additional dealer forecourt and website data to deliver its monthly statistics. It said that the £777 increase in the value of a diesel car sold via its platform represented “a promising start for used diesel prices” However, petrol saw a more impressive leap in used prices in January, recording an average price of £10,713, which is a £1,733 jump on January 2017 – representing a 10% increase on a like-for-like basis. Online searches for petrol cars, meanwhile, have steadily risen and accounted for 43% in January 2018, compared to just 26% in November 2016. In January 2018 4% of all fuel-related searches were attributed to alternatively fuelled vehicles, which was no movement from December and a 1% increase year-on-on. Comparing the total volume of AFV searches across the year, the number of searches for AFVs on Auto Trader increased 65% between 2016 and 2017, with electric alone recording a huge jump of 84% in searches. Karolina Edwards-Smajda, Auto Trader’s retailer and consumer product director, said: “With new diesel registrations continuing to tumble, it’s very reassuring to see used diesel prices not only retaining their value, but actually increasing in January. “It’s clear, however, just how harmful the government’s strong anti-diesel stance has been on the automotive industry. “We can see that the misstep in not clarifying the difference between new Euro6 and older vehicles has seriously dampened consumer buying confidence, reflected in both the ongoing fall in new diesel registrations, as well as the searches on our market place.”
