Despite the summer holidays, demand for used cars was strong in August with dealers seeing improved days to sell as prices and stock levels remained steady, according to MOTORS’ Market View.
Days to sell for the month averaged 28, four days faster than July. Franchised dealers led the pace at just 18 days, followed by car supermarkets at 22 days. Independent dealers averaged 50 days, a month-on-month (MoM) improvement of seven days.
Views per vehicle increased 7% MoM in August to reach a new high for the year, with vehicles priced under £10,000 attracting the most attention.
The average advertised price of a used car remained stable at £17,362, a marginal MoM dip of £58. After peaking at £19,183 in January 2023, prices this year have consistently tracked at under £17,500. This gradual realignment has resulted in closer year-on-year (YoY) comparisons, with August tracking at just £682 below where they were 12 months ago, a sharp contrast to previous months when the difference was £1,866 as recently as February.
Stock levels for the month remained flat at 53 units, suggesting dealers are replenishing inventories as cars are sold rather than stocking up, a strategy in line with strong wholesale prices and tight supply. Even car supermarkets, who have been steadily growing stocks since April, held back in August.
The YoY inroads made by alternative fuelled vehicles continues with EVs representing 5% of dealer stock, up from 3% last August, while hybrids increased from 6% to 9%, both at the expense of petrol (53%) and diesel (34%).
For the fourth month in a row the Vauxhall Corsa was the top selling car on MOTORS, followed by the Ford Fiesta, Volkswagen Golf, Ford Focus and BMW 1 Series.
“Despite the traditional impact of the summer holiday season, used car buyers remained active in August as demonstrated by improved days to sell and increased online viewing activity over the course of the month,” said Lucy Tugby, Marketing Director of MOTORS.
“Affordability remains a key issue for many used car buyers as seen by the high level of interest in vehicles priced under £10,000, rewarding dealers prepared to source older cars as part of their stock mix.
“Overall, it’s encouraging to see further stability in the used car market, with minimal monthly price fluctuations and a gradual closing of YoY disparities,” said Tugby.
