A study from S&P Global Mobility revealed that the average age of passenger cars and light trucks in the United States is now 12.5 years–a new record, Autoblog reports.
This is another record set and came as no surprise, as this is the sixth year in a row that the average age of vehicles has risen. Todd Campau, associate director of aftermarket solutions for S&P Global Mobility, cited a number of factors for the increasing age: at first, the COVID pandemic played a large role before microchip shortages continued to present problems.
“But the pressure was amplified in the back half of 2022 as interest rates and inflation began to take their toll,” Campau noted.
As a result, retail and fleet sales in the U.S. saw an 8% drop from 14.6 million units in 2021 to 13.9 million units in 2022: the lowest point recorded by S&P Global Mobility in more than a decade.
With 14.5 million vehicle sales projected for 2024, however, Campau said that things could change soon.
“While pressure will remain on average age in 2023, we expect the curve to begin to flatten this year as we look toward returning to historical norms for new vehicle sales in 2024,” Campau stated.
