Used car market plummets

Registrations of used cars in July registered a decline of almost 70% from a year ago, to 11,374 units, according to statistical data provided by the Administration and Interior Ministry. Compared with July 2008, when a real “flood” of used car imports from Western Europe was registered as the pollution tax came into effect, this year demand plunged as the value of the tax doubled in March 2009. In January, registrations of used cars were also below the level reached in the same period of last year, as the pollution tax was modified in mid-December, but the July drop is almost double the one posted at the beginning of the year. For registrations of new cars, July was the third weakest month this year, down 50% against the similar period of last year, to 10,613 cars. At the level of the first 7 months, new car registrations dropped by around 57% from a year ago. At the same time, used car registrations rose by 25%, to 140,450 cars. Dacia posted the highest volume of new registered cars, of 4,172, down 25% from July 2008. In the case of old cars, the leading position is filled, just like last year, by Volkswagen, with 3,155 cars, followed by Opel with 2,788 units and Ford – 1,068 passenger cars.