In December 2021, used car sales in Spain accounted for a total of 203,527 units sold, which represents a drop of 5.4% compared to the result of the previous year. In 2021, used car sales reached 1,989,662 units, 9% more than in 2020.
The used car market has demonstrated its strength and resilience in a year that has been marked by the stock crisis in dealerships and the uncertainty derived directly from the coronavirus pandemic. However, last month the figures for used vehicle transfers reported a notable drop. In December 2021 the used car sales in Spain
reached the 203,527 units, a 5.4% less than in the same period of time of the previous year.
Despite this poor result, the accumulated figures do show a notable rise. And it is that, in the period between January and December 2021, used car sales totaled 1,989,662 units, a 9% increase than in 2020. In the past year 2.3 second-hand cars were sold for every new vehicle. A very important time and one that will foreseeably continue to rise.
The “mileurista cars” are protagonists among individuals
With regard to sales by seniority, the Operations with used cars between 5 and 8 years old were the ones that obtained the highest increase during the past year, with an increase of 34.2% and a total of 173,699 units. On the other hand, the so-called “mileurista cars”, those models over 15 years old, have been the protagonists of transactions between individuals. They concentrated 34% of the market and saw their sales increase by 22.7% in 2021.
The year that we have left behind has been marked by a shortage of supply derived from the global shortage of microchips. That is why imports set the standard to meet the demand for younger models, the so-called pre-owned cars. Hence, transactions with imported vehicles grew 28.4%, while operations with vehicles from rental car fleets fell 26.2%.
Used electric cars exceeded 10,000 units
Regarding energy sources, if we go a step further and break down the sales figures we will realize that the Diesel used cars accounted for the majority of transactions with 59% of transfers, which represents a rise of 7.2% compared to 2020. Gasoline models rose 6.8% to 723,146 units.
Alternative powertrains continued to gain prominence. Especially used electric cars, which saw their operations grow by 91.7% in 2021 to reach 10,285 units. However, they represent only 0.5% of the total market. They play a testimonial role although the trend is upward.
On the other hand, and in the same way, used plug-in hybrid cars they closed the year positively. Diesel-powered plug-in hybrids accumulated 1,428 units (+ 651.6%) while gasoline-powered plug-in hybrids had 11,443 units (+ 281.6%).
Used car sales in Spain in 2021
All the autonomous communities saw growth in used car sales throughout the past year. The largest increases occurred in the Community of Madrid (19.4%), the Balearic Islands (16.4%) and in Asturias (9.9%). At the other end of the scale, we have Melilla (0.3%), Catalonia (3.2%) and Ceuta (4.4%) as the regions in which second-hand vehicle transfers increased the least.