8:47 am, May 28, 2026
May is shaping up to be a ‘stable’ month for used car values, despite a number of external challenges.
That is the verdict of valuations guru Derren Martin, who says that the recent heatwave, half-term and two Bank Holiday weekends could all have the potential to cause a drag on demand.
Martin, dubbed the ‘Godfather of car values’, appeared as the most recent guest on the Car Dealer Podcast, where he gave a positive outlook for the fifth month of the year.
While EV values rose in April, largely as a result of climbing petrol prices, Martin told hosts James Batchelor and James Baggott that this month is staying more stable.
He added that electric remains the fastest-selling powertrain, with values still ‘more or less in line with petrol and with diesel.
Speaking on last week’s show, he said: ‘It’s looking pretty stable, to be honest, which is good for May.
‘I was looking particularly at electric vehicles, because there’s obviously lots in the press, and you don’t have to be any godfather of valuations to predict that when petrol and diesel prices go up, that people will start to look for EVs and hybrids and that type of thing.
‘EVs did go up in value during April. In May, they’re pretty stable. So there’s still demand out there for them. Demand is increasing, but obviously as we’ve been saying for a long time, supply is steadily increasing as well.
‘It feels like at the moment, they’re fairly well matched. Overall, May seems to have been pretty good.
‘Obviously, we’re now in for a spell of decent weather and then half term, so that can slow things down, but at the moment, it’s been a pretty good month.
‘With the bank holiday, it can tend to drive people away from going to look for cars. But at the moment, it’s all pretty steady as she goes.
‘EVs are still selling well. They’re still the fastest selling fuel type and their values are more or less in line with petrol and with diesel. It’s all pretty level at the moment actually, so far this month compared to last month.’
During a wide-ranging conversation, Martin also discussed the impact of Chinese brands on used car values, the current state of play at Autotrader and Ford’s upcoming model offensive.
You can watch the full episode on the Car Dealer 2.0 YouTube channel or listen on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
