Used car values continued to rise in the auction halls last month, although the rate of growth slowed considerably over the huge gains made earlier in the year.

Figures from the big two – BCA and Manheim – show that average used values rose in April by 1%, but ex-fleet stock out-performed the market.

The average price paid for a defleeted car at a BCA auction in April was £6,885 (an increase of 3.9%), while at Manheim the value was £6,163 (2.1%).

However, the rises are not as large as the gains made in January, February and March, when prices rose at such a level that they wiped out the RV losses which occurred when the market collapsed last summer.

Both auction houses have welcomed the continuing rise in values, and both now hope to enjoy a period of stability after the rollercoaster ride over the past 12 months when values plummeted to a low of £4,726 in October.

Mike Pilkington, managing director of Manheim Auctions and Remarketing, said: “With average values relatively static across all three sectors the dramatic rise in values seen in the early part of the year appears to have peaked.

"Over the next few months we would expect prices to fall, but only in line with seasonal norms.”

BCA communications director Tony Gannon added: “April has been something of a surprise, as all the signs were that the market was beginning to soften.

"Demand has held up exceptionally well, resulting in another modest, but welcome, increase in average value month-on-month.

“Compared to April last year, average values are ahead by more than 4%, which suggests that values are very much back on track.

“In fact, the market has improved by more than 18% from the bottom of the slump last August.”

New car registrations continue to slide

April was the 11th consecutive month that new car registrations have fallen, with large scale falls from most manufacturers.

According to figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, only Alfa Romeo (up 76.8 thanks to the launch of the MiTo small car), Chevrolet (up 17.8% due to strong sales from the Lacetti and Matiz), Hyundai (increasing by 19% with strong demand for the i10 city car and i30 lower-medium hatchback), and Smart (rising by 7%) bucked the trend.

For the rest the falls were, in some cases, severe – Renault down 63% and Saab falling by 55%.

Other heavy falls came from BMW (-39%) and Fiat which fell by 49%.

April’s sales of 133,475 are 24% down on the same month last year, and bring total sales this year to 613,833 – down nearly 29% for the year-to-date.

Fleet sales fell nearly 22% to 92,571 units in April, while business registrations to fleets operating 25 vehicles or fewer fell 23.4% to 6,994.

In the fleet sector, most of the key markets saw reductions – small cars fell by 8% despite healthy demand for the new Ford Fiesta and Vauxhall Corsa, the lower-medium market dropped by a third while upper-medium sales fell by 27% despite a strong showing for the new Vauxhall Insignia and continuing demand for the Ford Mondeo.

Only the city car sector saw an improvement, with sales to fleets up by 5%.

This market has been buoyed by fleets looking for low emission cars, witnessed by sales of the Peugeot 107 and Toyota Aygo increasing by 57%, Fiat’s 500 up 62%, the Citroen C1 up by a quarter and Kia’s Picanto recording a 72% increase.

For the year to date, the Ford Focus remains the best-seller in fleet, totalling 23,386 registrations, followed by its smaller stablemate, the Fiesta, on nearly 18,000 units.

Vauxhall’s Corsa is third on just under 17,000 units, while the Astra takes fourth on 14,000.

Two recently-launched models, the Vauxhall Insignia and Volkswagen Golf, have quickly established themselves in the fleet top 10, with the Golf in fifth on 9,677 sales year-to-date and the Vauxhall seventh on 8,784.

Audi’s A4 is the only premium-badged model in the fleet top 10.

April fleet sales (new)

  1. Ford Focus 7,579
  2. Vauxhall Corsa 5,650
  3. Ford Fiesta 4,504
  4. Vauxhall Astra 3,489
  5. Volkswagen Golf 2,742
  6. Vauxhall Insignia 2,396
  7. Ford Mondeo 1,942
  8. Vauxhall Zafira 1,661
  9. Peugeot 308 1,567
  10. Peugeot 207 1,559

2009 fleet sales (new)

  1. Ford Focus 23,386
  2. Ford Fiesta 17,869
  3. Vauxhall Corsa 16,967
  4. Vauxhall Astra 14,096
  5. Volkswagen Golf 9,677
  6. Ford Mondeo 9,045
  7. Vauxhall Insignia 8,784
  8. Audi A3 6,727
  9. Vauxhall Zafira 6,282
  10. Audi A4 6,237

 

Auction sales by model segment

Unsurprisingly, the core fleet medium (lower-medium cars) and large family models (upper-medium cars) dominated the traffic flow through the Manheim halls in April, accounting for 28% and 19% of volume respectively. Small hatchbacks accounted for 15%. Source: Manheim

Average sale price ex-fleet - Manheim

Manheim’s April average ex-fleet value of £6,163 is only slightly up on March, but well ahead of April 2008. August saw the very bottom of the market slump, with consumer confidence at a low as uncertainty surrounded the UK economy, house prices, bank stability and job security. Source: Manheim
 

Average sale price ex-fleet – BCA

Fleet figures from BCA echo the trend reported by Manheim (see below), although values don’t bottom out until December – two months later. BCA’s performance over the first four months of 2009 echoes that of Manheim, with steep gains resulting in summer’s losses being wiped out. Source: BCA