It seems British car-buyers are turning away from new vehicles in their droves. According to Joe Wright in the Telegraph we’re looking to a future with more and more people driving older and older cars, matching the nation’s ageing population:
Trusty motors from the 2000s and early 2010s such as the Peugeot 107, Ford Focus, Honda Jazz and Vauxhall Corsa are still a very common sight, with owners refusing to put them out to pasture.
In fact,16 million of the 34 million motors on Britain’s roads are more than a decade old. Experts believe this will continue to increase in the years to come thanks to Labour’s unrelenting war on motorists.
“People are definitely spending money to keep their cars on the road as opposed to upgrading,” explains Umesh Samani, Chairman of the Independent Motor Dealers Association. “The majority just want a car which gets them from A to B, and it’ll stay that way.”
The reluctance to buy means the average car is now 9.4 years of age. That’s a 42% rise from the average 6.6 years in 2003, according to insurer Green Flag.
It seems it’s a long-term strategy on the part of some drivers:
“People are already planning these things in their head. They know that down the road, there won’t be a choice of petrol, so they’re thinking ‘well, this could be my last one so I’ll keep it longer’.”
So much so, the number of shiny new cars sold to families and individuals has plummeted by almost 450,000 in the past eight years, according to figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) trade body.
Look back less than a decade and the scale of the collapse in new car sales is remarkable:
A total of 701,964 cars have been sold to private buyers so far this year, compared to 772,589 in 2023. It’s a huge slump from the record 1,138,610 sold in 2016.
It’s not hard to see how the Government is pulling out all the stops to discourage buying cars – even their beloved ‘planet-saving’ EVs – as part of what increasingly seems like a wider policy to crash the economy:
Rachel Reeves announced in her maiden Budget that Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) rates will be increasing from April. She also announced that electric vehicles (EVs) will no longer be immune from the levy, while bills for petrol, diesel and hybrid cars will rise by at least £100 and as much as £2,745.
Meanwhile, car manufacturers are doing their bit to sell fewer cars too:
The appetite for hatchbacks rather than SUVs is evident in the used car market, with the Ford Fiesta being by far and away the most-bought second-hand car, with 308,000 sold in 2023.
Samani adds: “People want little cars like that as a runabout, but they’re not making little sports cars any more. There aren’t many of what I call desirable cars on the market, and people aren’t particularly jumping up and down to buy EVs.”
Conversely, recent used cars are so much more reliable they are realistic prospects for far longer than in yesteryear:
Nowadays, well-made cars from the 2000s are lasting longer. They remain mechanically and electronically simpler than newer cars, and, in most cases, are relatively economical to keep on the road.
Some old bangers, likely made by a reliable Japanese or Korean brand, can run like a Swiss watch even when they are decades old.
Worth reading in full.
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“It’s not hard to see how the Government is pulling out all the stops to discourage buying cars – even their beloved ‘planet-saving’ EVs – as part of what increasingly seems like a wider policy to crash the economy:”
At last somebody working in the MSM has worked out what is really going on. Wonders never cease.
Are TPTB going to allow us to keep our old petrol/diesel (ICE) cars going on and on into the future? I suspect that there will be an increasing range of measures aimed at driving old ICE cars off the road.
It is bad enough for private motorists but from what I can see many small businesses (electricians, plumbers, gardeners, home hair dressers, etc.) rely on picking up secondhand vans and vehicles as a vital part of the transport they need for their business. It is hard to see that Electric Vehicles are going to answer their transport needs.
Also don’t forget the old biddies living out in the sticks, where public transport in non existent, how are they to get about or are they planning on stepping up the “assisted Dying Bill” of PATHWAYS NG163 rollout. The question “will they let us” should be will we let them FFS. They need taking down a peg of two and not sure the ballet box is the solution.
Or the gibbet.
May be the gibbet is not a potential option, but when everything falls into chaos, most options are very limited.
Perhaps it is nearing the time for the Revolution as the need to get about and work to support our families is becoming increasingly challenged and sitting about talking about it may have to turn into action. I am only saying!!
There could be a range of items from VED hikes, fuel excise duty on the Gov side, and obsolescence in the manufacturing side for various components. Then it’s always possible that they might ration the fuel. I can vaguely remember that they almost did that in the 1970s, and actually issued a lot of ration coupons, that were never used.
Some tax rises are a but surreptitious as well, like when they introduced E10 petrol (les energy content but flat rate duty).
A black market in dodgy fuel will develop. There will be organised crime wars and corrupt MOT certificates. There will be fuel handling and storage accidents and contaminated fuel probably containing lead. Dodgy garages will modify cars to conceal the failed catalytic converters and I expect remapping to cope with poor quality fuel to be commonplace.
The authorities will attempt to clamp down on this and vilify the ‘crooks’ in the media. They’ll engage in a arms race to detect the latest methods of bypassing the regulations. It will be a war of attrition if we allow them to continue.
Meanwhile in the rest of the world they’ll carry on burning coal and oil until something better (cheaper) turns up.
If they want them off the roads, they’ll just make it impossible to buy petrol/diesel. They might, eventually, but not yet. They are attempting a controlled demolition of the economy …. not a sudden collapse.
That Mk1 Fiesta reminds me of my College days when a student had one of those and had me driving it because he had not passed his test; don’t remember any insurance though. How we dodged the Police is remarkable when you consider that catching “Boy Racers” was their favourite pass time. Woke and naughty words on the internet were just a twinkly in the Old Bills eye.
The newest car I ever had was around three years old on finance back in 2001, never again. The author is right about Japanese cars from the turn of the century being a bargain and reliable. Mitsubishi Carisma 1.9 GDI petrol and the Honda Accord Mk1 2 & 3 are great reliable cars. The Lexus LS 400 is a 4L V8 petrol beast, so not exactly economical but very well built and will go forever as long as maintenance is kept up to date (oil changes). Here is an old Top Gear episode looking at the LS 400
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jad8Ck1Zl88
You have to wonder why, when people are poorer and fuel is dearer, the manufacturers even of ICE cars make them heavier and heavier, and more loaded with electronics, cameras, SATNAVs and whatever. Even the mis-named Fiat 500 is the size of a small bus.
Doubtless some of it’s necessary to meet emissions requirements, etc, but couldn’t someone produce a light, basic car – an Austin 7 for the 2020s – doing 120mpg without a top speed of 130mph that nobody every gets to? Since the manufacturers are going to get fined anyway for not shifting EVs, the government penalties would be offset by not bothering to invest in wannabe Teslas.
And the mechanics and Haynes-manual users would stay in business (but I suppose the main dealers would go bust by not being able to charge £3000 for a set of plugs).
I understand car manufacturers are not government, but did they not agree to all of this. They danced with the Devil.
To be able to make and sell a car in Europe it has to comply with all the necessary safety regulations, crumple zones, air bags, electronic controls for emissions etc. loads of it all adding weight and cost to the vehicle. then there is all the added spec’, you don’t really need but it is a sales point and an object to boast about. Land Rover Defenders fell foul of the manufacturing regulations, and the most obvious restrictive manufacturing regulation yet to come is the removal of ICE cars from the European markets.
The latestregulations call for more and more electronics/computer control to manage the car. VW fell foul of the regulations by (being found out) trying to outsmart the tests.
People are innovative. We should expect people to seek to subvert or replace the electronic controls in cars. There are already things/services you can buy (though not legal install on a road vehicle) to block the registration of distance traveled from showing in the odometer (no link for obvs reasons but the term for what I’m talking about is mileage blocker). I expect complete replacement or reprogramming of the electronics to be widespread as more and more restrictions are put on ICE cars.
The demise of the traditional motor industry is, in my opinion, a huge event. Whether or not you drive or have a car, the motor industry is a huge cornerstone of our economy and our society. The demise of the UK motor industry will have huge implications for our economy and it will have a significant effect on our personal lives, for many of us, car travel will at best be just for local utility travel, this will adversely impact on leisure, tourism, sport etc.
Older cars don’t monitor you, don’t need a mandatory software update, do 50mpg on widely available fossil fuel and you can service, repair and upgrade them yourself.
You own an old car.
New cars and their manufacturers own you.
My 21 y/o Honda Accord is 140k miles, still feels luxurious and still going strong. It has no fancy tech to become obsolete. It cost me £2300 seven years ago and apart from regular servicing, tyres etc it’s cost me virtually nothing since
I have no plans to replace it and will invest to keep it alive. I got a big ding from some vandalism and I’m even happy to pay 1000+ on bodywork (that is if I lose the court case)
I may even buy another 2nd hand ICE, slightly newer just to get a bit further past 2030
I won’t be compelled by anyone, I’ll just dig in my heels.
i have a 23 year old quite small Toyota . i love it. was going to get a new car but maybe i won’t now. the news ones don’t have cd players either .my old car does.
But surely this won’t affect Jaguar? After all their last advertising campaign was a masterpiece of showing off how good the cars were and what they could do (without featuring a single car). I’m sure everyone will rush out and buy a Jag after that.
I’ll be trading in my Hyundai i10 next year, when it has 50,000 miles on the clock and I’m intending to buy a new Suzuki Swift (mini-hybrid). And then I’ll run it into the ground. It’ll probably last until I no longer want/am able to drive. I do not intend buying an EV … not now, not ever. The Eco tyrants can go eff themselves.
I’m thinking of replacing my Toyota Yaris – which will be 20 years old this year – having just spent a fortune on the MoT. It now looks like he front discs will need replacing, Do I pour still more money into it, or cut my losses and get a newer old car?
20 years old next year
Very true – modern cars are full of shit you do not need and is just more to go wrong and be expensive and complicated to fix. Electric handbrake anyone? This crap has made cars increase exponentially in price for no obvious benefit.