Epidemic of Aging: Demographic Crisis Hits Nation's Driveways

Steph Willems
by Steph Willems

Never mind 2020. In the previous decade, Americans purchased more new cars per year than ever before. Roaring out of the recession, U.S. sales volumes ticked upwards year after year, settling above the 17 million marker and staying there for quite some time. Even last year’s haul defied expectations, landing north of that hallowed marker.

It didn’t reverse the increasingly geriatric nature of the country’s fleet, however. American automobiles, on average, have never been older, and they’re now poised to jump rapidly in age.

That’s the conclusion made by IHS Markit, which analyzed ownership data and revealed that the average car plying America’s roadways is 11.9 years old. Remember when the average age ticked above 11? It wasn’t long ago.

The analytics firm claims that one in four cars is now more than 16 years old, which is a testament to the rising quality of modern-day automobiles. Back in the ’90s, one-quarter of cars parked at the grocery store were not Ford Mavericks and Chevy Vegas. Nowadays, that beige 2002 Corolla is still ubiquitous.

As the new-car market cooled off just prior to the pandemic’s arrival, the country’s fleet-wide age was already poised to climb. COVID-19 ensured that scrappage rates declined even further, as buyers, increasingly worried about their financial future (or already laid off) kept what they had.

“At the start of 2020, all signs were pointing to moderate growth of the average age of vehicles through the first half of the decade, and there was certainly growing pessimism about how long the strong economic fundamentals could last,” said Todd Campau, associate director of Aftermarket Solutions at IHS Markit, in a release.

“However, the COVID-19 pandemic has created the perfect storm to accelerate U.S. light vehicle average age in coming years. This should be a positive side effect for the aftermarket, as the majority of repairs for older vehicles come through the aftermarket channel.”

In 2019, scrappage rates were less than that seen in 2009. Thanks to Cash for Clunkers, old vehicles exited the road at a faster clip than in pre-pandemic times; that decade-ago pace now stands to appear breakneck, assuming a similar program isn’t brought into effect in the near term.

IHS Markit predicts that, in a few years, average vehicle age could hit 12.5 years. It’s great news if you own a repair shop, or if you’re thinking of buying in the low end of the used market, as the glut of cars sold in the wake of the recession sink in price.

All that said, it’s not like Americans no longer need wheels. The pandemic hasn’t changed that. In fact, the uncertain virus situation has lent private vehicle ownership an increased importance.

“While work from home policies may continue for some time, there also has been increased reluctance in the use of public transit and ride sharing, and many consumers are opting for road trips instead of air travel for summer vacations,” Campau said. “As a result, vehicle miles traveled (VMT) may not be impacted greatly in the coming years, given the increased personal use to offset everyday commuting.”

[Image: Toyota]

Steph Willems
Steph Willems

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  • 3SpeedAutomatic 3SpeedAutomatic on Jul 29, 2020

    I’ve got my eye on a Lincoln Corsair. Lots of bells and whistles, small turbo 4 cylinder, but shutter at the $40k plus price tag. Decided to keep the the 8 yr old Escape with Wal-Mart chafe on the doors. As long as the A/C and radio work, I’m happy

    • Lie2me Lie2me on Jul 29, 2020

      I went and looked at that Corsair, that is one well done little Lincoln

  • Jeff S Jeff S on Jul 29, 2020

    Not a bad idea to drive an older vehicles that is not as fancy. After having enough money how much more do you need if you have a nice home, decent clothes, enough food, and the ability to be able to afford most things. If you vehicle is safe, reliable, and looks good then why do you need anything else unless you just want something. Cars have become less important to me as I have gotten older.

  • CanadaCraig You can just imagine how quickly the tires are going to wear out on a 5,800 lbs AWD 2024 Dodge Charger.
  • Luke42 I tried FSD for a month in December 2022 on my Model Y and wasn’t impressed.The building-blocks were amazing but sum of the all of those amazing parts was about as useful as Honda Sensing in terms of reducing the driver’s workload.I have a list of fixes I need to see in Autopilot before I blow another $200 renting FSD. But I will try it for free for a month.I would love it if FSD v12 lived up to the hype and my mind were changed. But I have no reason to believe I might be wrong at this point, based on the reviews I’ve read so far. [shrug]. I’m sure I’ll have more to say about it once I get to test it.
  • FormerFF We bought three new and one used car last year, so we won't be visiting any showrooms this year unless a meteor hits one of them. Sorry to hear that Mini has terminated the manual transmission, a Mini could be a fun car to drive with a stick.It appears that 2025 is going to see a significant decrease in the number of models that can be had with a stick. The used car we bought is a Mk 7 GTI with a six speed manual, and my younger daughter and I are enjoying it quite a lot. We'll be hanging on to it for many years.
  • Oberkanone Where is the value here? Magna is assembling the vehicles. The IP is not novel. Just buy the IP at bankruptcy stage for next to nothing.
  • Jalop1991 what, no Turbo trim?
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