What is happening to used cars in Serbia?

Car, Photo: Dejan Briza

Sales of used cars in Serbia decreased in the period January-November 2020 by eight percent compared to the same period in the previous year, while sales of new and light commercial vehicles fell by 25 percent, due to to impact coronavirus pandemics, according to the analysis of the polovniautomobili.com site.

As specified in the analysis, a total of 128,121 used cars were sold during the 11 months of this year, compared to 139,383 units last year, while 23,872 new vehicles were sold compared to 31,602 vehicles in the same period of 2019.

After a drastic drop in sales during the state of emergency and the first wave coronavirus, the used car market has recovered, with higher sales since June than last year.

In October 2020 alone, more than 15,000 used cars were sold, and in November 10,590. However, the good sales results in the second half of the year did not compensate for the decrease in sales in the first half of the year.

In terms of new vehicles, the drop in sales was most pronounced in March and April, in the months in which importers of new vehicles traditionally post good sales results, mainly due to the car show, which was canceled this year. year.

car, Photo: Dejan Briza

For example, 2,929 passenger and light commercial vehicles were sold in March 2019, while in the same month this year almost half were sold, that is, 1,519 units. In April, the drop in sales was even more drastic: from 4,258 units last year to just 1,042 units in April this year.

Even after the lifting of the state of emergency, buyers’ interest in new vehicles did not reach the level of last year. From May to November, 17,162 new cars were sold and in the same period last year 20,752.

With respect to the age of used cars, in the reporting period, cars were the most purchased between 2005 and 2007, followed by those produced between 2004 and 2008. This year, as in previous years, customers had more demand for used cars with diesel engines. – Up to 71 percent of those sold are diesel and 26 percent are gasoline.

Also, the best-selling cars are Euro 3 (42%) and Euro 4 (32%).

The best-selling used brands were Volkswagen, Opel, Peugeot, Audi and Renault.

In terms of new cars, during the 11 months of 2020, Skoda was the best seller (3,446 units), followed by Fiat (1,907), Renault (1,717), Toyota (1,242) and Hyundai (1,131).

Of the models, customers chose Skoda Octavia, Renault Clio, Fiat Tipo, Skoda Fabia, Fiat 500L, Opel Astra, Skoda Superb, Dacia Sandero, Toyota Jaris and Hyundai Tucson.

Unlike used car buyers, new car buyers were more interested in cars with gasoline generators, with only 0.15 percent of buyers opting for an electric car.

The situation is epidemijom korona virusa It evidently influenced the change in driving habits of a part of the citizenry, which is indicated by the fact that since the abolition of the state of emergency there has been a large increase in the sales of new mopeds, and especially of new motorcycles .

Compared to the previous year, in the first ten months of this year, sales of mopeds increased by 12 percent and those of motorcycles by up to 69 percent.

The cry of the crown also played a role in the drop in used car imports. According to data Office of Statistics of the RepublicFrom January to October this year, 7.0 percent fewer used cars were imported than in the same period last year. The decline was particularly pronounced in the first half of the year, stabilizing in the summer months. From July to October, 49,919 used cars were imported and during the same period last year 38,797 used cars.