Discontinued Fords are among the most in-demand used cars in February, a new report from Autotrader reveals.
Used Ford vehicles dominate the list of fastest-selling secondhand cars, making up four of the top 10.
The blue oval bonanza is led by the Ford Ecosport. The Focus and Fiesta are other ‘zombie Fords’ still in great demand among used car buyers.
A fourth Ford, the Kuga SUV, is the only in-demand used car still in production. Ford controversially announced the end of the Fiesta, Britain’s best-selling new car for many years, in 2023.
The company followed this up by ceasing production of the Ford Focus last year.
Autotrader’s data shows that a five- to 10-year-old Ford Ecosport takes an average of 17 days to sell. This makes it the second fastest-selling used car so far in February – behind only the Tesla Model Y, which takes an average of 16 days to sell.
A five- to 10-year-old Ford Focus takes 18 days to sell, as does a three- to five-year-old Ford Kuga. A Ford Fiesta of similar age takes 19 days to sell.
With the Ecosport, Focus and Fiesta all now discontinued, Autotrader says ‘the data highlights the intense competition for the remaining stock of these household names’.
All three discontinued Fords are selling significantly quicker than February’s 27-day used car average.
Middle-aged march
Notably, adds Autotrader, the fast-selling Ecosport, Focus and Fiesta all sit in the five- to 10-year-old age bracket, “a segment that accounts for 60 percent of the entire top 10 list”.
The marketplace is warning of a ‘structural shift in supply’, with consumers buying cars in this age bracket ‘faster than they can be replaced’.
It’s all due to the 2.5 million new cars ‘lost’ due to Covid-related pandemic pauses in production.
The supply of five- to six-year-old used cars is set to drop by 25-30 percent by the end of 2026 – increasing to a 35 percent drop for five- to seven-year-old used cars by 2027.
“As middle-aged stock becomes scarcer, the challenge for retailers is not just selling cars, but sourcing the right ones,” said Autotrader head of strategy and insights, Marc Palmer.
Palmer urged used car dealers to diversify their stock in response to the current decline in middle-aged vehicles.
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