Second hand cars cheapest in Spain and Italy according to report

The cost of buying a used vehicle in Spain and Italy can reach differences of up to €4,000 when compared to the same make, model, age and mileage in France or Germany, the Autoscout24 report claims.

The reason for this difference is that most of the demand in the two Mediterranean countries is found among average earners, who take home in region of €1,000 a month in salary, meaning they can not afford a new car in cash or to meet monthly hire purchase payments for a brand-new vehicle.

Those earners solve their mobility problems by buying any car they can afford without paying much attention to its age or mileage, according to the European Price Observatory.

Some of the most important features for a Spanish buyer include satellite navigation and the fact that the service history is up to date.

They also prefer to buy from dealers who offer a guarantee, no matter what the age of the car.

Currently, the most expensive second-hand cars are found on Spain’s islands – the Balearics and the Canaries – possibly due to the extra cost of shipping from the mainland, whilst the central Spanish regions of Extremadura and Castilla-La Mancha have the cheapest used vehicles.

Prices went up the most in the last year in the Balearics, followed by Valencia, Andalucía and Castilla y León, with Extremadura, the Basque Country and Madrid in the middle.

The greatest price falls were seen in the Canaries, Castilla-La Mancha, Navarra, Murcia and Asturias.