Demand for gas-guzzlers still remains strong

As environmental concerns gather pace and car buyers’ focus moves slowly over to smaller cars, demand for gas-guzzlers still remains strong, according to Experian, the global information solutions company.

The impact of the government’s attempts to make people more aware of their carbon footprints on the planet has yet to reach the car buying public as interest in cars with bigger engines continues to grow.

The latest used car statistics from Experian show that while overall used car sales fell throughout the country, the only cars to see an increase in sales continue to be MPVs, sports cars, SUVs and luxury models – seen as the biggest culprits of high CO2 emission.

However, negative media attention and higher tax on the most polluting cars may finally be taking their toll on sales of SUVs because, for the first time since Experian started collating used car sales statistics in 1997, sports cars saw a higher increase in sales than SUVs.

Kirk Fletcher, Managing Director of Experian’s Automotive division, said: “High performance sports cars are just as guilty of high CO2 emission as SUVs, but the SUVs seem to have taken the brunt of the negative media attention and it can be argued that this is impacting on sales.

“The statistics also indicate a small, but growing move towards smaller used cars over the past few years. Cars falling into the lower medium segment, such as the Ford Focus, are still the most popular types of cars in the UK, with the highest number of sales. However, the gap between this segment and super minis, such as the Vauxhall Corsa, is closing fast. In fact, for the first time ever, 2006 saw the highest number of used car sales come from the super minis.

“These cars are not only kinder to the environment, but they are cheaper to buy and cheaper to run. Furthermore, cars with bigger engines tend to lose their value more quickly than super minis. It will be interesting to see how soon sales of super minis completely take over sales of traditional family cars like the Ford Focus.”

Kirk continued: “Car buyers also need to bear in mind that as more smaller cars saturate the market, there is an increased chance of buying one with a hidden history. And for cost conscious consumers, being able to reliably check that a potential purchase is the genuine article and is not going to end up costing them more becomes even more important. AutoCheck is one of the most comprehensive used car checking services on the market and is also outstanding value for money.

“Car buyers can carry out five separate checks over a period of 60 days, compare them and choose the car that is right for them. The checks give information on a vehicle’s status, including if it has outstanding finance, has been recorded as an insurance write-off, is reported as stolen or may have been clocked – all things which could materially affect the car’s value or the consumer’s decision to buy.”