Used cars

Second-hand ‘value gap’ grows

Rising used car values might sound like bad news for second-hand buyers, but new list prices are increasing even faster!

Auto Express Car Reviews

By Ross Pinnock

13th June 2007

Statistics released by the trade bible show that while the cost of three-year-old models is rising across all sectors of the market, new cars are even more expensive.

The latest edition of the guide reports: “Higher new and used car prices mask heavier depreciation, with typical losses for three-year-old cars increasing by just over £2,000 between 2001 and 2007. In March 2001, the average list price of new cars being registered was £13,900. By March last year, that figure had risen to £17,100.”

The booming popularity of more expensive premium brands, growing demand for pricier diesel and hybrid models, as well as clever marketing campaigns – which encourage buyers to purchase more expensive trim levels – are to blame for this increase, according to the company.

As our table shows, this year has seen a slight reduction in the typical drop in values after three years, which will come as good news to new car owners. However, this is expected to rise when the next quarterly figures are analysed, and Glass’s warned that the improvement is unlikely to represent an ongoing trend.