Small cars more expensive than average and less choice
Buying a new car is getting more and more expensive. Not really news, but the ADAC shows just how drastic the price increase has been in recent years by comparing small cars over the decades. While a small car with a combustion engine cost an average of €13,041 in 2014, it is currently €22,591 - an increase of 73 percent. According to the car club, high inflation and the discontinuation of low-cost base models in particular have recently driven prices up.
Consumers have to dig even deeper into their pockets for a small electric car. On average, electric cars cost 29,457 euros, almost 7,000 euros more than a combustion model. Albeit with a slight easing compared to the previous year. In 2023, an average of €32,155 still had to be paid. According to the ADAC, the reason for this is the price reductions following the abolition of the subsidy premium and the - albeit slow - increase in the range of small e-cars on offer.
At the same time, however, the total number of models on offer is shrinking. While customers still had a choice of 80 small cars with combustion engines in 2014, today there are 55 models, around a third fewer. The variety of electric cars, on the other hand, has increased; within ten years, the range has grown from eight to the current 22.
"For many consumers, it is almost impossible to buy a new car," says ADAC Technical President Karsten Schulze. This is particularly true because small cars are disappearing from the market or have become disproportionately expensive. Switching to an environmentally friendly e-car is made even more difficult by the reduced supply and even higher prices, says Schulze. (aum)
More info for topic: ADAC , Kleinwagen , Preisanstieg
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