Values of used cars have continued to strengthen in February, according to Cap HPI’s Black Book Live.
The Finance and Leasing Association’s head of motor finance Adrian Dally has said that lenders expect a “stable” 2018 after full-year results from 2017 revealed new business had grown 2% by value and 7% by volume.
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.”
BCA Nottingham’s Top Car Sale showed further signs of strength in the luxury and supercar sector as online bidders accounted for 85% of its auction stock.
Cap HPI has announced the appointment of Max Robert Mueller as future car value manager for Germany as it continues to drive growth on the continent.
Tech-savvy car dealers have been urged to recognise the potential sales boost that can be delivered by embracing smartphone technology in their business.
Supercars and luxury vehicles often outperformed valuation expectations to feature strongly among the most impressive performers at auction during 2017, according to BCA.
MotoNovo Finance’s new online used car classified platform findandfundmycar.com has generated more than a million searches in its first two weeks of trading.
Big Cars used car supermarket founder Adam Stott has blamed major changes to the business’ stock and finance provision for creating the “unsustainable trading conditions” that forced its closure.
Used values of petrol cars continue to be strong but demand for electric cars has grown, says Cap HPI.
Big Cars has ceased trading with immediate effect, closing the doors of its used car dealerships and laying off staff a decade after it was founded by entrepreneur Adam Stott.
The average price of a used petrol car rose by almost 10% during 2017, but the average price of a used diesel car fell 5%, says Motorway.co.uk.
Shoreham Vehicle Auctions (SVA) celebrated putting the 100th dealer used car sales person through a unique used electric vehicle (EV) training course.
The Ford Fiesta remains the UK's favourite used car for both the wholesale and consumer automotive market, followed by the Ford Focus and Vauxhall Corsa.
A record week of used car trading got 2018 off to a strong start for BCA as the remarketing specialist experienced increased buyer demand in strong New Year trading.
2018 will be a year of relationship building for savvy remarketers – of positioning themselves as helpful, informative and strong partners to dealers.
The National Association of Motor Auctions has reported that used car prices rose by 2.4% as average mileages fell by 0.8% at auctions during December.
Gumtree and eBay will operate as one business after merging to offer car retailers exposure across two platforms when listing vehicles for sale.
