Used Car Market Enters Off-Season, Year-End Buying Opportunity Approaches

[Asia Economy Reporter Changhwan Lee] As the domestic used car market enters the off-season, prices have been declining. Experts advise customers considering purchasing used cars that the year-end price drop period could be an opportunity.

On the 6th, car trading platform Encar.com announced that after analyzing major used car prices, the average prices of both domestic and imported cars fell by 0.58% compared to the previous month in November.

Domestic cars saw a slight overall average price decrease of 0.17% compared to the previous month, maintaining similar prices to last month despite November being the traditional off-season for the used car market.

There were no significant price changes across sedan and SUV (Sports Utility Vehicle) models overall, but the Renault Samsung SM6, which recently released a model with updated year specifications, saw its average price drop by 1.96% this month compared to other models.

Additionally, the Hyundai Sonata New Rise fell by 1.52%, Kia All New K7 by 0.88%, and All New K3 by 0.64% in average price, while the Hyundai Grandeur IG rose slightly by 0.35%, and Kia The New K5 2nd generation increased by 0.04% on average.

The SsangYong Tivoli Armor, which had been declining in price for several months, saw a significant average price increase of 2.13%. Hyundai Kona, Santa Fe TM, All New Tucson, The New Sorento, and Renault Samsung QM6 also experienced slight average price increases, all under 1%.

Imported Car Prices Fall by 0.97%

Imported cars saw an average price decrease of 0.97% compared to the previous month, with more models experiencing price drops and larger declines than domestic cars overall.

Among them, the Audi A4 (B9) recorded the largest drop, with its average price falling 3.76% compared to the previous month. Notably, the maximum price dropped significantly by 6.44%, with the highest price falling by 1.94 million KRW to 28.25 million KRW compared to the previous month.

Additionally, the Porsche New Cayenne's average price fell by 2.88%, with both minimum and maximum prices dropping by 2.38 million KRW compared to the previous month, making it possible to purchase in the 80 million KRW range.

Other models such as the Chevrolet The New Spark fell by 3.09%, Audi New A6 by 1.71%, Volvo XC90 2nd generation by 1.64%, and Mercedes-Benz C-Class W205 by 1.42% in average price.

An Encar.com representative stated, “From November, the used car market enters the off-season due to Korea Sale Festa, year-end new car promotions, and the release of updated year models, but domestic car prices in November this year seem to have been relatively well defended. For imported cars, the price decline tends to be larger compared to domestic cars, so customers considering purchasing imported cars are recommended to take advantage of the year-end period.”