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Honda makes top 10 profit-turning used car brands for first time in Dealer Auction table

  • Honda was tenth most profitable used car for dealers last month, says Dealer Auction
  • It secured them an average margin of £2,245
  • Land Rover was top with £4,300
  • Mitsubishi Outlander was quickest off the forecourts
  • Used EVs are noticeably absent from table

Time 9:15 am, February 9, 2024

Honda made the top 10 brands list of Dealer Auction’s Retail Margin Monitor last month for the first time since the monitor was launched in January 2022.

Its average retail margin of £2,245 saw the Japanese marque secure tenth place in the table.

Land Rover boasted the highest margin at £4,300 – more than £1,000 above second-placed BMW (£3,100).


Meanwhile, Volvo was third (£3,025), followed closely by Mercedes-Benz (£3,020).

Top 10 makes by average retail margin

  1. Land Rover – £4,300
  2. BMW – £3,100
  3. Volvo – £3,025
  4. Mercedes-Benz – £3,020
  5. Audi – £2,675
  6. Mini – £2,475
  7. Mazda – £2,375
  8. Kia – £2,275
  9. Nissan – £2,250
  10. Honda – £2,245

Source: Dealer Auction

Kieran TeeBoon, marketplace director at the automotive digital wholesale marketplace, told Car Dealer: ‘The arrival of Honda in the top 10 for the first time says all we need to know about the used market right now – expect the unexpected!


‘We’ve seen a number of marques enter the list for the first time over the past few months, and more mainstream brands overtake their premium rivals.

‘Following the data is the best way to stay on top on these many movements.’

At model level, the Land Rover Discovery Sport topped the charts again, with an average retail margin of £4,825, followed by the Volvo XC90 (£4,600) and Range Rover Evoque (£4,275).

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January 2024 also saw more diversity, with the Nissan X-Trail and Skoda Superb claiming ninth and tenth spots, respectively.

The X-Trail hasn’t been seen in the monitor since May 2023, while the Superb last appeared in 2022.

Top 10 models by average retail margin

1) Land Rover Discovery Sport

Average retail margin: £4,825

Average Auto Trader days to sell: 39

Average Auto Trader Retail Rating: 76


2) Volvo XC90

Average retail margin: £4,600

Average Auto Trader days to sell: 47

Average Auto Trader Retail Rating: 53

3) Land Rover Range Rover Evoque

Average retail margin: £4,275

Average Auto Trader days to sell: 47

Average Auto Trader Retail Rating: 59

4) BMW 5 Series

Average retail margin: £3,400

Average Auto Trader days to sell: 53

Average Auto Trader Retail Rating: 44

5) Mercedes-Benz C-Class

Average retail margin: £3,150

Average Auto Trader days to sell: 49

Average Auto Trader Retail Rating: 51

6) Mitsubishi Outlander

Average retail margin: £3,050

Average Auto Trader days to sell: 37

Average Auto Trader Retail Rating: 72

7) Volvo XC60

Average retail margin: £3,040

Average Auto Trader days to sell: 48

Average Auto Trader Retail Rating: 55

8) Mazda CX-5

Average retail margin: £3,025

Average Auto Trader days to sell: 38

Average Auto Trader Retail Rating: 77

9) Nissan X-Trail

Average retail margin: £3,020

Average Auto Trader days to sell: 45

Average Auto Trader Retail Rating: 67

10) Skoda Superb

Average retail margin: £2,900

Average Auto Trader days to sell: 49

Average Auto Trader Retail Rating: 59

Source: Dealer Auction

Another model that delivered strong returns was the sixth-placed Mitsubishi Outlander, with an average retail margin of £3,050. It was also the fastest seller in the top 10 and ranked with the highest average Auto Trader Retail Rating.

Noticeably absent, though, were electric models, with speculation that ambitious government-mandated sales targets have triggered aggressive price reductions on new EVs – in turn pushing down used residual values on used electric models.

TeeBoon added: ‘It’s interesting to see these trends within the top 10 itself. The performance of the Outlander certainly makes it one to watch!

‘While the market remains in a transitional period, it’s important that dealers don’t look back and instead embrace evolving market dynamics, using all the available data at their disposal.

‘A more affordable used EV supply isn’t necessarily a bad thing for the industry as for some consumers they will present a more viable alternative to brand-new models.

‘It simply means dealers need to be more savvy about where they seek those higher profit margins – and diversify their stock accordingly.’

Richard Walker, director of data and insights at Auto Trader, said: ‘The diverse range of vehicles in the Retail Margin Monitor showcase the many opportunities available to retailers right now.

‘The number of visits to our marketplace reached an all-time high of over 85 million in January, which highlights how robust current consumer demand is.

‘Given such positive market fundamentals, it’s disappointing to still see stock being priced under true market value, particularly of what we would call the best of the best.

‘By not applying a retail-back approach to pricing, retailers are at risk of selling themselves short and missing out on significant profit opportunities.’

John Bowman's avatar

John has been with Car Dealer since 2013 after spending 25 years in the newspaper industry as a reporter then a sub-editor/assistant chief sub-editor on regional and national titles. John is chief sub-editor in the editorial department, working on Car Dealer, as well as handling social media.



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