Between a sometimes fatal conversion bonus and the health crisis, cars over 20 years old had experienced a complicated first half of 2020. But in the first six months of 2021, their sales prove that they still have a tough skin and they are even sometimes doing better than in 2019.
In the name of air quality, the granny hunt is on. Already threatened by the conversion premium, old cars are starting to be evicted from cities by the famous low-emission mobility zones (ZFEm). But for motorists on a tight budget, these ancestors sometimes remain the only way to get around without depending on public transport. In some cases, they may also have acquired the status of a collector’s model, to the point that a like-new Citroën 2CV was recently sold for over € 120,000 at auction! But this impressive price should not make us forget that no less than 4,251 “Deudeuche” were still traded in the first half of 2021 in France, i.e. 44% more than in 2020 and 8% more than in 2019.
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Iconic models are doing well
Containment requires, the first six months of 2020 had been very special. For this article devoted to the sales of cars over 20 years old, we therefore preferred to compare with the last “normal” year, namely 2019. This is an opportunity to note that grannies who show increasing numbers have often already become icons, like the DS, the BMW Z3 which appeared in the James Bond saga or even the Renault 4. Bodes well for the Losange which will revive its 4L in 2025. Another future ghost, the R5 enjoys a virtual stability, just like the Peugeot 205 and the Volkswagen Beetle.
Even the long unloved BX and 309 seem to be enjoying renewed interest. But most models that are not yet popular with collectors see their number of transactions go down, like the Peugeot 306, Citroën ZX or Renault 21. A trend that the announced extension of ZFEm could well contribute to speed up, much to the chagrin of all who think the old pots make the best recipes.
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