Europe Sees New Cars Cheaper Than Used, Too

Europe Sees New Cars Cheaper Than Used, Too

Europe is now experiencing the same counterintuitive phenomenon that was recently noted in the States: that some new cars are selling for less than their used counterparts.

The Financial Times in London points out in a story published Thursday that aggressive discounts on new vehicles and a shortage of high-quality, late-model used cars that has pushed up used car prices is resulting in new cars selling for less than used cars.

Earlier this month, an analysis by Edmunds.com, parent of AutoObserver.com, showed the same situation in the U.S.

In Edmunds.com's analysis the deals on some new cars are so generous that they actually are making the new car less expensive than even a one- or two-year-old used version of the same model. The analysis found the savings rose as high as $6,175 -- that being for the BMW 650i convertible, which has an $82,000 price tag. But even on more affordable mainstream cars, like the Mazda 3 or the Honda Civic Hybrid, the savings was $1,000 to $3,000 for the new model versus the old.

"Desirable used vehicles are becoming harder to find, pushing up their prices, while today's new cars are heavily discounted," observed Edmunds.com CEO Jeremy Anwyl. "This is creating an unusual economic event: It can actually be less expensive to purchase a new car than a used car."

In Europe, car-buying price guide Parker's said used cars being more expensive than new ones was a first, at least since it began keeping records in 1972. While not across the board, the savings on a new versus the same used car can be as much as 1,000 pounds.

Parker's spotted a new General Motors-made Vauxhall Corsa for 5,995 pounds -- nearly 500 pounds less than a used model with 5,160 miles on the odometer selling for 6,494 pounds, the Financial Times reported. A Mazda 6, available new for 11,485 pounds from car supermarket Cheap-Cars-Online, was listed used with 2,500 miles for 1,000 pounds more, at 12,499 pounds.

Photo by GM

The Vauxhall Corsa is cheaper to buy used than new in the U.K. 
 

Michelle Krebs:  is Editor-in-Chief of AutoObserver.com. Follow @AutoObserver on Twitter.