6:42 am, December 29, 2023
Used cars. They’re the backbone of the automotive industry.
So it’s not surprising then that news stories about them always attract a lot of attention, and this year was no different.
Here’s your chance to revisit the 10 used car stories that drew the most views on our website in 2023 – and for a market that can be quite volatile, they weren’t all about prices!
Click on the headlines for the full report.
1) Used car dealer closes after 30 years and cites ‘failing Jaguar Land Rover’ models
In February, we told how Stableford-based dealership Autovogue had ceased trading after three decades of business.
One of the main reasons it gave for its decision to shut up shop was ‘huge additional costs and continuing issues with failing used Jaguar Land Rover vehicles’.
Above is the statement posted by Autovogue on its Instagram account. Click on the image to read it in full.
2) Kent used car dealer has Fiat 500 clamped by DVLA despite being parked on its private land
A Fiat 500 was on private land owned by Strood Motor Centre and lined up to be sold when it was clamped by the DVLA.
Staff first thought that it was a practical joke but nope, the DVLA insisted it needed proof of land ownership. For some strange reason, though, the agency’s clamping partner – NSL Services – ignored the four vehicles parked behind the Fiat…
3) MOT tester ‘forced’ to issue fraudulent certificates after being given ‘kicking’
An MOT tester issued hundreds of fake certificates after being given a ‘kicking’ by two men and out of fear for his family.
The city’s crown court was told a ‘mystery man’ put Auto Scuderia employee David Carden, 53, of Kenmare Road, Bristol, under pressure to issue the fraudulent certificates after he’d been lent money.
Carden, who said he was also shown pictures of his family’s homes so complied out of fear, admitted 12 charges of fraud and asked for another 809 offences to be taken into consideration.
He was given an eight-month prison sentence, suspended for a year, told to carry out 150 hours’ unpaid work, undergo 10 days of rehabilitation and pay £2,250 costs.
4) Used car dealer bumps into company director in Portuguese bar while taking unauthorised beach holiday
Dublin-based car dealer Gary Maloney went AWOL in October 2022, leaving staff at Bill Griffin Motors ‘in the lurch’ by his unexplained absence.
But the mystery was soon solved when he walked into a bar in Albufeira on the Algarve – and came face to face with one of the firm’s directors!
It all ended up at a Workplace Relations Commission hearing this September after Maloney left the company but claimed he’d been unfairly sacked. Ireland’s Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment told Car Dealer on December 21 that a decision would be issued in the new year.
5) Used car prices rose AGAIN in January
Used car prices were definitely a hot topic throughout 2023 and they started the year as they meant to go on!
We told how Auto Trader was reporting on the prices of cars advertised by dealers on its platform, with January the 34th month it had seen consecutive price growth!
6) Used car dealers react to Ulez expansion
Sadiq Khan’s extension of the Ulez towards the end of August caused much anxiety among used car dealers.
They reported seeing the value of non-compliant vehicles tumble, while some reported the price of compliant vehicles rocketing because of sky-high demand.
7) Land Rover Discovery named most unreliable used car
In June, What Car? revealed that the Land Rover Discovery had once again received the unwanted award for most unreliable used car.
The 2004-2017 model scored just 47.8 per cent in the publication’s 2023 Used Car Reliability Survey, which asked 25,000 owners what they thought of their cars.
Its gong for bottom place was the same result it achieved in 2022.
8) 13 vehicles up in flames after arson attack at used car dealership
A blaze that broke out at Vision Motor Leeds in May was treated as an arson attack.
A total of 13 cars were destroyed at the dealership in Pontefract Road, Stourton. It’s unknown if anyone was ever brought to justice over it.
9) 1987 Ford Sierra Cosworth sets new world record as it sells for nearly £600,000
A classic Cosworth had autophiles drooling and digging deep when it went up for sale at Silverstone Auctions in February.
The specially upgraded RS500, with just 5,192 miles on the clock, finally sold for a jaw-dropping £596,250 – perhaps not surprising as it was said to be possibly ‘the finest example of Ford’s most desired Cosworth ever’, which led to it going for almost four times its guide price!
10) Motorpoint announces £300,000 loss for 2023
Rounding off the list is our report on Motorpoint posting a £300,000 loss for its latest financial year after a record £21.5m profit the year before.
Bosses at the used car supermarket blamed ‘limited stock availability’ and the ‘well-documented fall in value of electric vehicles’ as well as rising financing costs.
Make sure you keep coming back to Car Dealer in 2024 for all the top stories about the used car sector!
Don’t forget to keep Monday, November 25 free as well, because that’s when we’ll be holding our 2024 Used Car Awards at The Brewery in London!
