Used Diesel Sales Fell 5.3 Percent as 4.8 Percent of Buyers Chose Electric

• The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders counted 2,030,619 used car sales in the third quarter of 2026, up 0.5 percent and ahead of every third quarter from 2022 to 2025.
• Used battery electric sales rose 23.2 percent to 97,625, lifting their share of the market to 4.8 percent from 3.9 percent a year earlier.
• Used diesel sales fell 5.3 percent to 623,354 while hybrid sales jumped 25.9 percent to 135,204.

One in 20 Used Car Buyers Now Drives Away in an Electric Car

Between July and September, 2,030,619 used cars changed hands, which is 9,354 more than the 2,021,265 sold in the same quarter of 2025. Of those, 97,625 were battery electric. That is 4.8 percent of the market, up 0.9 percentage points from 3.9 percent a year earlier, or roughly one buyer in 20.

The electric climb runs through the whole year. Across the first nine months of 2026, used battery electric sales are up 39.6 percent to 295,524. Hybrids grew faster in the quarter: 135,204 sales, up 25.9 percent, lifting their share to 6.7 percent from 5.3 percent. Plug-in hybrids went the other way, down 13.3 percent to 20,911 cars and 1.0 percent of the market. The trade body describes that small segment as prone to volatility.

Add the three together and 253,740 electrified cars found a new owner in the quarter, 12.5 percent of all sales. The remaining 87.5 percent were petrol and diesel cars with no electric assistance, down from 89.5 percent in Q3 2025. The figures come from DVLA records, which the trade body says are periodically revised, so earlier quarters can shift slightly.

Petrol Holds the Lead While Diesel Supply Shrinks

Petrol stayed the default choice. A total of 1,148,576 petrol cars sold, 56.6 percent of the market and just 271 fewer than a year earlier. Diesel is the fuel losing ground: 623,354 sales, down 5.3 percent, with a 30.7 percent share. Petrol still outsells diesel by 525,222 cars a quarter, and diesel still takes nearly three sales in every ten.

The trade body puts the diesel drop down to reduced supply from the new market, meaning fewer diesels are reaching the used pitch from new car sales. A buyer who wants a diesel has fewer cars to choose from than a year ago, while electric and hybrid choice widens.

The overall market stayed close to its recent peak. Q3 2026 sits 3,844 sales below the 2,034,463 recorded in Q3 2021, so the quarter beats every Q3 from 2022 to 2025 and falls just short of the 2021 total. For the first three quarters combined, 6,056,169 used cars sold, 17,798 more than the 6,038,371 of 2025 and the best start to a year of any from 2020 to 2025. The same period of 2019 reached 6,130,762, a gap of 74,593 cars.

The Ten Cars Buyers Chose, and How the Market Splits

The ten best sellers made up 463,742 sales, or 22.8 percent of the quarter. The Ford Fiesta led with 73,500, 13,412 clear of the Vauxhall Corsa on 60,088. The Volkswagen Golf took 56,243, the Ford Focus 52,215, the Volkswagen Polo 40,801 and the Nissan Qashqai 39,723. The BMW 3 Series followed on 37,099, the MINI on 36,892, the Vauxhall Astra on 34,924 and the Audi A3 on 32,257.

By body type, superminis remain the biggest block at 32.0 percent of transactions, with volumes up 0.1 percent to 650,511. Lower medium cars hold 26.6 percent after a 0.5 percent fall in volume. Dual purpose cars grew fastest, up 8.5 percent to 368,428 and an 18.1 percent share.

Colour choice is narrow. Black led with 429,630 sales and a 21.2 percent share, ahead of grey on 386,681 and white on 335,318. The three together passed 1.15 million sales and took 56.7 percent of the market. Silver fell 6.7 percent to 254,714, still more than a quarter of a million cars. Cream rose 14.2 percent, but only 1,575 cars changed hands, against 15,718 orange, 11,690 yellow and 10,258 brown. A buyer set on an unusual colour searches a very thin stock.

What the Shift Does to Prices

The sales data carries no prices. Cap HPI, which tracks trade values, supplies the October snapshot on its standard benchmark: used values fell 1.7 percent overall, worse than the 1.1 percent fall of October 2025. The fuel split follows the SMMT sales trend. Electric cars gained 0.6 percent on average, with almost half of electric models rising in value, about a quarter unchanged and about a quarter falling. Diesel lost 2.6 percent, petrol 2.2 percent, hybrids 1.8 percent and plug-in hybrids 1.9 percent. Cap HPI says diesel is under pressure in most sectors from higher fuel prices, and that more independent dealers are returning to stock electric cars.

On a 10,000 pound car, those percentages work out as follows: a diesel lost 260 pounds across October, a petrol 220 pounds, and an electric car gained 60 pounds. The detail behind the diesel figure is in the earlier report on used diesel values fell 2.6 percent.

November looks softer again. Cap HPI expects used values to drop 2.1 percent overall, against an average November fall of 2.0 percent across the years from 2012 and 1.9 percent in 2025. It expects more cars on sale, from September part exchanges and larger fleet returns. Electric cars should still beat the market, though by a smaller margin, and the lead is likely to narrow if oil prices return to normal.

Electric buyers face a second moving part. Cap HPI counts 60 models eligible for the government Electric Car Grant, most at 1,500 pounds and 16 at the top tier of 3,750 pounds. It expects the latest new car offers to press on the values of nearly new used cars. The report on used electric car values sets out where those prices sit today.

How a Buyer Can Use These Numbers

Start with fuel type, which now moves prices in opposite directions. A diesel falling 2.6 percent in a month while electric cars rise 0.6 percent is a gap of 3.2 percentage points, or 320 pounds on a 10,000 pound car. Diesel prices are drifting down, so an offer below the asking price on a diesel is realistic. Cap HPI describes electric demand as very strong, so expect a seller of an electric car to hold firmer.

Compare the same model across fuels before you visit. The ten best sellers have the deepest stock, so a Fiesta, Corsa, Golf or Focus search returns many cars to compare at different prices. Rarer choices, including cream and orange cars, give less to compare against.

Check the paperwork before paying. Vehicle tax is the step that follows the purchase, and what happens to car tax covers it step by step.

The trade body ties the future of the used market to the new one. Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, said:

“Another quarter of growth means Britain’s used car market remains on course for its best year since the Covid-19 pandemic. Long-term investment in new models is broadening choice for used car buyers, while growth in new EVs is driving a surge in second-hand uptake. To sustain this progress and make zero emission mobility possible for all motorists, the new car market must remain strong, underpinned by measures that boost EV demand – including affordable and widely accessible charging infrastructure and compelling fiscal incentives.”

SMMT also takes a position on the government’s ZEV Mandate. The trade body says manufacturers are discounting brand new electric models to hit targets it calls increasingly unfeasible, that the discounts push down trade-in values, and that lower trade-in values hold owners back from renewing, which slows the flow of cars into the used market. It wants the mandate reformed. That is the trade body’s view. A slower flow of used cars would reach a buyer as fewer cars to choose from.

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Sources

• SMMT: Used car market records second quarter of growth with one in 20 drivers going electric
• Cap HPI: Future Used Car Market Overview, November 2026

Reviewed by Preetam Gadekar