The main reason is a lack of supply of new cars due to various factors, but often pinned on a lack of chips being made in China due to Covid. People don't want to wait, so they buy nearly new, which is inflating prices

The other reason is that fuel is getting more expensive and there's a recession coming, so there is a lot of demand for small, efficient, reliable cars at the moment.

I think we'll see a downward movement soon, but we are no longer part of the EU so don't expect prices to ever go back to where they were.

In those 11 years, I would have expected car inflation to have taken the £3k up to around 5k. The current shortage of new cars will have raised that figure to some extent. Looking at the prices of C3's using the cars for sale tool here shows available cars around that mark. SUVs will be more expensive because they are seen as desirable.

The car had low mileage of about 53, 000 and it was in great condition. I bought it because it suited my needs at the time and I bought almost straight away when I saw in on the forecourt. No long searches like now.

My car is still running fine and has 91,000 on the clock now. Looks ok except for some minor scratches. It also has a ripped passenger seat. The car has been great all these years but I don't want to keep driving it until it claps out. I only use it as a run around now but would love a car I can be confident driving at long distances and looks good.

Your main thought seems to be wanting not to look too out-of-date. If you cannot overcome that you will have to give in to the buying urge. But you have a car you have always liked and which hasn't let you down. It would be nice if one could always know when a breakdown is imminent, but life ain't like that. So give the car regular maintenance and with only 91K on the clock it should last some time yet. What is more, it will be easier and cheaper to fix than any newer car you might replace it with.

You are better off sticking to your car. You say it is 11+8 = 19 years. What value would you get if you sold today? The French run their cars until they die.

There is a risk in buying a used car. You may be buying someone else's problem car. You need to money to be able to fix problems (which you may not if you are stretching your budget).

It is worth buying if you know the owners or there is a genuine reason for sale.... today's cars are less well made then those of years ago.

Unfashionable cars are cheaper.

Prices went up after Covid (even though we did a lot less driving and most cars sat there being driven less).

Why are used cars so high in price? I'm a single parent and work self employed.

That's a very simple question with a simple answer - supply and demand. Just now there are more buyers than sellers, so prices stay up. Some say that may be changing, but don't expect miracles yet.

Various things have really upset the car market of late and there will be more turbulence ahead especially re interest rates etc. In my opinion WLTP started it as many car manufacturers paused to get all the ducks in line (it was an expensive process where many versions vanished esp 3 door models) - followed by Covid which triggered the chip shortage (affecting more than just the car market). I think that recent financial events may trigger a market correction - myself I'd hang on a bit longer as now is a terrible time to buy a car.

It's a terrible time to buy a car, new or used.

You say your current car is still reliable, but desperately needs to be replaced, and you don't trust it on long journeys, but mostly use it as a local run around.

My advice would be, keep your current car, look after it as well as you can and car prices might get more sensible in the future.

Got longer distance drives, hire a car. Yes hire cars are expensive, but for the occasional journey they are vastly cheaper then a new car, or an eight year old second hand car that might have all sorts of expensive issues.

Edited by klu01dbt on 10/10/2022 at 22:43

It’s running fine? Quick trip to get seat covers, good session with a light t cut and polish. Don’t need to change the car!