‘They don’t make them like they used to’, so goes the old saying. When it comes to cars, the UK’s motorists go along with it. Despite the advent of PCP finance deals, advantageous interest rates and tempting discounts, the average age of the car (and light commercial vehicle parc) parc – some 34 million vehicles – stands at 9.4 years, the highest since records began almost 25 years ago.
Coincidentally, this figure remains the typical working life of a car. And yet almost half the cars plying our roads are over a decade old and, according to Autocar, with 10.5 million aged over 12 years – accounting for nearly a third of the total car parc.
They situation isn’t about to improve either as the annual mileage of a private motorist now stands at under 7500 miles, meaning motorists are using their vehicles less. Auto Trader predicts that from a pre pandemic figure of almost 14 million cars under the age of five years, this will fall further to 11 million by 2026. Furthermore, industry pundits forecast that by 2027 more than 15 million oldies will still be putting in an honest shift.
UK drivers aren’t alone with the likes of Germany and France fairing only slightly better and the average age across the EU stands at around 12 years.
It’s not surprising: Autocar reported that new car prices have, on the quiet, soared by almost 130% on average over the past 15 years – a level that’s 50% above inflation. And don’t think that buying second-hand eases the financial constraints. The rocketing prices of new cars have dragged up used values to the point where the typical price of something that doesn’t wear the latest reg but is still within warranty lies between £16,000-£18,000.
With the country’s top six buys comprising the now discontinued Ford Fiesta, followed by the 50-year old VW Golf, family favourites the Ford Focus, Vauxhall Astra and Mini. It’s little wonder that the Independent Garage Association (IGA) says small garages are reporting increased business opportunities for small non franchised workshop in 2025, despite figures from eBay claiming 35% of private motorists now attempt to fix their cars at home.
Ageing cars good news for independents
Dan Joyce, retail operations director at Kwik Fit told CAT: “Kwik Fit’s research recently found that the economic climate has affected the planned motoring expenditure of more than half of all drivers. They are taking measures such as delaying the purchase of a newer model, skimping on servicing or switching to cheaper replacement components.”
Adam White, commercial program director of GSF Car Parts freely admits an ageing car parc has always proven very good news for the aftermarket. “As older cars are maintained beyond manufacturers’ warranty there’s greater demand for parts that the independent aftermarket can meet,” said White. “Generally, the older the car, the more parts are required to maintain it: eventually the point comes when cars are very old and become uneconomical to repair and maintain, but they tend to be scrapped before suppliers stop supplying parts.”
Kwik Fit’s Joyce also believes an ageing car parc presents significant opportunities for the independent aftermarket. He said: “While car owners may be holding on to their vehicles for longer, they still want them to run as efficiently as possible. Modern cars have much greater longevity than those manufactured in previous decades, as long as they are properly cared for. The aftermarket needs to highlight the importance of regular servicing and preventative maintenance and the fact that this can be done to manufacturers’ standards without the need for dealership prices”.
Adam White doesn’t see parts availability becoming an issue for obsolete models: “Parts suppliers will look at overall parc numbers as it’s the size of the market for parts that determines how economical replacement parts are to produce. This isn’t a UK-centric calculation. It’s a global market. GSF’s move into their new National Distribution Centre (NDC) opens up more opportunities to access factories all over the world within this global supply chain.”
LKQ Euro Car Parts added that “it won’t become an issue, because we won’t let it”. It said: “As market leader we have more sales data than any other distributor and are therefore best placed to forecast demand for replacement parts across the total car parc. And our suppliers look to us for this insight, to inform ranging and production.”
Risk of “race to bottom” on labour rates
Motorists rely on the aftermarket to provide a cheaper service but there are dangers ahead, according to Euro Car Parts. It told CAT: “Just as technicians can’t afford to compromise on the quality of a repair, garages can’t compromise on labour rates if they are to run sustainable, viable businesses. If independent workshops race to the bottom on price and ultimately go out of business, motorists will have no choice but to visit the franchised dealers instead, where repairs come at a premium – exacerbating the issue.
“A different approach is needed to ensure drivers don’t delay or avoid essential maintenance because of the cost. Our range is tiered so that garages can tailor their recommendations to their customers’ vehicles and budgets. And there are third party solutions like Payment Assist whereby motorists can split the bill into manageable monthly instalments with no interest and no fees.”
GSF agrees that independents operate within a competitive market and there’s always challenges. “The successful garages will be the ones that understand their cost base and can set appropriate labour rates for the highly expert services they provide. For newer cars, the challenges might be around availability of parts, technical information or specialised tooling. For older cars it might well be the challenges are more around price sensitivity. GSF aims to keep relevant product options to help garage customers compete.
“Our Drivetec brand is growing extremely quickly. Ranges cover braking, lubrication, steering and suspension, timing kits, water pumps, rotating electrics, brake calipers, batteries and more. Drivetec offers garages excellent quality at a very competitive price point where a recognised premium brand is not required,” said White.
Modern cars have much greater longevity than those manufactured in previous decades, as long as they are properly cared for” says Joyce, adding: “The aftermarket needs to highlight the importance of regular servicing and preventative maintenance and the fact that this can be done to manufacturers’ standards without the need for dealership prices. Drivers are often looking for advice from their garage, so it’s important for experts in the aftermarket to highlight that some supposed cost savings could be false economies – for instance putting off servicing can damage a car’s resale value, and budget tyres are unlikely to last as long premium ones.”
Future outlook with EV transition
The transition to EVs with budget-minded motorists is going top pose its own problems, Joyce said. “There is still uncertainty among many drivers about the transition to EVs, so it could become more important to drivers to maintain their existing ICE vehicles to as high a standard as possible. As always in the aftermarket, the motivating factors for customers are clear – good value, convenience, quality parts and expertise along with high levels of customer service. Every driver will place slightly different emphasis on each of these factors but all will come into their decision making to some degree, irrespective of the age of their car.”
“Electrification isn’t just about bringing new EVs onto our roads; it’s about keeping them there – for which a viable aftermarket is essential” stresses LKQ Euro Car Parts. “But this is a period of transition, and it’s essential that older vehicles can also be serviced and repaired without any of their components becoming obsolete or irreplaceable. The business opportunity for suppliers is two-fold.”
However Joyce warns: “An ongoing challenge for the aftermarket is a residual skills deficit. An ageing car parc puts further pressure on garages to have the correct level of both the capacity and capability to service, maintain and repair a wider variety of vehicles as work transfers from dealerships to aftermarket providers.”
What about DIY? The aftermarket is in general agreement that despite a recent upsurge it’s on the wane. “It’s a niche sector” says GSF. “Most people simply do not have the time, skills or facilities to consider working on their own cars. The proportion of DIY mechanics has remained stable over many years and if anything has declined as vehicles have become so much more technically complex.”
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