Fuel crisis flips used car market: diesel demand dives as EV interest surges

The fuel crisis is reshaping what New Zealanders buy, with one of the country’s biggest used vehicle retailers reporting a sharp swing away from diesel and large petrol vehicles.

Speaking at the company’s annual meeting in Auckland, Turners Automotive Group chief executive Todd Hunter says used car demand has shifted noticeably to lower value cars since the fuel shock hit, at the expense of higher value vehicles, diesels and larger petrol engines. Small hybrids among used imports are in strong demand.

The same pattern shows up in new vehicle data. Diesel’s share of new car sales has fallen by almost a third in a year, from around 30 per cent to 21 per cent in July, while battery electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles have doubled from about 15 per cent of new sales to more than 30 per cent in twelve months.

For used buyers still wanting a ute or large SUV, there may be an opening. Turners says market prices for used diesel utes and petrol SUVs have fallen, but lease companies have been slow to accept the lower prices, so fewer ex-lease vehicles are selling through. Once those vendors adjust, more late-model ex-fleet utes and SUVs should reach the used market at reset prices.

Overall used car volumes from April to August are tracking around 3 per cent behind the same period last year, Hunter says, and Turners expects demand for diesel and larger vehicles to recover as the economy improves, pointing to a similar dip that reversed over the November to February period last year.

The company is expanding its used vehicle network in the meantime, with new branches under construction in Wiri, Tauranga, Whanganui and Hastings, and replacement sites in Drury and Hamilton.