8:19 am, June 9, 2020
The biggest used car price falls recorded by classified websites Auto Trader and eBay Motors Group have been revealed exclusively to Car Dealer.
The research from the top two biggest used car advertising portals shows that three year old Audi A3s have dropped 4.3 per cent and Volvo V40s have fallen 4.0 per cent.
Both websites assessed asking prices from franchised and independent dealers on their respective websites for Car Dealer and we can reveal the top 10 fallers below.
The positive news is that while there were some fallers in the used car prices assessed, the falls are far less than those recorded this time last year.
A spokesperson for Auto Trader said: ‘The biggest decrease is only 4.0 per cent and when we ran the same data for this time last year, the biggest overall decrease was 8.1 per cent.
‘That’s a huge difference and really indicative of just how much the market has stood still.’
Richard Walker, Auto Trader’s Data and Insight Director, added: ‘It is really positive data, as we can see the price reductions are far less than the price increases which is a very encouraging position for the market.
‘These reductions are also still well within the ranges of daily price movements we see in a normal market, which indicates that retailers haven’t been panic slashing prices. With consumer demand bouncing back, retailers should stay strong with their prices, and ensure that their stock and their prices are right for their specific geographic area.’
Auto Trader assessed cars on sale between April and May while eBay Motors Group looked at cars on sale on their sites during May only.
We’ve combined their findings below to create a top 10 price fallers.
1. Audi A3
Age: Less than three years old
Price drop: -4.3 per cent
Out of 107 Audi A3s advertised on the eBay Motors Group platforms at the time of this research being carried out, prices had dropped by around £796 on average during May, making it the biggest faller in our list.
2. Volvo V40
Age: Three to five years
Price drop: –4.0 per cent
Auto Trader found the biggest price faller on its website was the Volvo V40 dropping four per cent, or around £493 on average.
3. VW Passat
Age: Three to five years
Price drop: –3.9 per cent
The Volkswagen in GT trim was the third biggest faller, according to Auto Trader, losing around £542 with the average asking price down to £13,451.
4. Vauxhall Insignia
Age: Three to five years
Price drop: -3.0 per cent
The Vauxhall Insignia in SRI Nav specification dropped by around £224 on average during April and May, say Auto Trader, to around £7,332.
5. Range Rover Evoque
Age: Three to five years
Price drop: -2.8 per cent
One of the biggest falls in terms of monetary value was the Range Rover Evoque – on average models dropped £569. The average selling price was down to £19,7865.
6. Mini Hatch
Age: Less than three years old
Price drop: -2.8 per cent
Dropping at independent dealers the most, eBay Motors Group found the Mini hatch fell £378 in May to an average selling price of £13,001.
7. Toyota Aygo
Age: One to three years
Price drop: -2.8 per cent
At a time when many buyers are trying to find small city cars, like the Mini, the Aygo fall was unusual. It dropped around £266 to an average selling price on Auto Trader of £9,131.
8. Ford Focus
Age: Three to six years old
Price drop: -2.6 per cent
Dropping around £250 in value, according to eBay Motors Group, the Ford Focus was down to an average selling price in May of £9,359. There were 810 models for sale at the beginning of the month, falling to 702 by the end.
9. Vauxhall Astra
Age: Three to five years
Price drop: -2.3 per cent
The humble Astra fell by around £205 in April and May, says Auto Trader, with the average asking price on the site around £8,747. The Estate model in SRi trim was the biggest faller.
10. Audi A4 Avant
Age: Three to five years
Price drop: -2.3 per cent
With an average selling price of £9,934 the Audi A4 dropped £236 during April and May, says Auto Trader. The estate model in SE Technik specification was the worst performer.
Although there were falls, this top 10 shows a resilient market with price drops marginal in most cases. It represents a market that was mostly closed off to customers with little movement during lockdown.
All eyes will now be turning to the used car market in June to see what the restart has done to used car prices.
The latest data from eBay Motors Group on the used car market performance points to positive signs for dealers, though.
The group reported that month on month sales leads were rising – up 45 per cent in May, with email enquiries to dealers leaping 65 per cent compared to this time last year, and phone calls up 25 per cent.
These in-bound enquiries are more important than ever with dealers unlikely to see as many customers strolling in off the street.
‘We strongly advise dealers to treat telephone and email enquiries with more importance than usual – they need to be ready for a world with significantly fewer walk-ins,’ said the group’s Marc Robinson.
The group reported price stability throughout May with the top 50 makes and models across its platforms rising by an average of 0.7 per cent. Within this figure independents saw an average increase of 2.7 per cent and franchised dealers a drop of 0.6 per cent.
Investigation: What is the latest with used car pricing?
More Used Cars stories can be found here
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