© Dacia
The French automobile market is more than largely dominated by the second-hand world. At the start of the year, the average price of a second-hand car has fallen. This 2.6% increase allows you to earn nearly 500 euros on average. “Good news” according to Anaïs Harmant, marketing director of La Centrale at the origin of this study.
During the first quarter, the cost of a used car was 21,900 euros, is still high, but 590 euros lower than at the end of the year. After a surge in used car prices at the turn of the decade, caused by a shortage of new models , “the market is regaining its balance” according to Anaïs Harmant.
Electric and hybrid: still unpopular
However, the average price of a used car is not at all the same depending on the engine chosen. This is partly explained by a very different number of sales.
If hybrid cars are popular among new registrations. They pale in comparison on the second-hand market. Diesel is still the most popular solution with more than 226,000 sales (48% of the market) in the month of March alone. Gasoline automobiles follow closely with 193,161 units, or 41% of trade.
As for “green” engines, hybrids and electrics are distributed less and more expensive. The average ticket is 30,590 euros. However, it is down more than 4% compared to the previous quarter and 12.6% compared to 2023.
Today, electric, hybrid or plug-in hybrid cars only represent 10% of sales on the second-hand market. During the month of March, 47,500 cars were sold in France. This is 4 times less than gasoline.
The opportunity: solution number 1
For 2023, the ratio of used to new cars was 2.95. So nearly 3 used cars were sold for one new one. A figure down compared to 2022, which showed a proportion ratio of 3.4 between the two markets.
In short, used cars are still much more popular, they are also cheaper in the majority of cases. But the biggest difference to remember between these two markets is to be found on the engine side. The sale of used electric or hybrid cars is still marginal. The French still prefer diesel or gasoline for their cars.
These figures must also be placed in a difficult context for the automobile market with a sharp drop in sales. In total, just over 7 million vehicles have changed ownership. In 2022, that figure was 7.9 million. A drop of 900,000 sales which is felt throughout the market.
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