This photo taken on Oct. 4, 2022, shows a used car dealership in Janganpyeong, eastern Seoul. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Oct. 4 (Korea Bizwire) — Eco-friendly vehicles such as hybrid cars and electric vehicles (EVs) are enjoying rising popularity not only in the South Korean passenger vehicle market, but also in the used car market this year, data showed Monday.
According to Transport Ministry data analyzed by the Carisyou Data Lab, the number of used passenger car transactions for the January to August period of this year totaled 1,297,796 units.
Of the total, sales of gasoline and diesel cars stood at 736,446 units and 378,656 units, respectively, down 5.2 percent and 14.1 percent from a year ago.
In contrast, sales of hybrid cars and EVs stood at 37,205 units and 9,897 units, respectively, up 13.2 percent and 53.3 percent year on year.
This represents a high growth rate, particularly given that the number of such models put on sale in the used car market is limited since most were released during the past two or three years.
By model, sales of sedans stood at 648,948 units, more than twice as high as SUVs. This is quite opposite to the trend seen in the car market.
Among domestic secondhand cars, the most popular model was Kia Corp.’s Morning minicar with 29,802 units sold, followed by Hyundai Motor Co.’s Grandeur HG sedan (29,324 units), the Chevrolet Spark minicar (26,250 units) and Hyundai’s Grandeur IG sedan (26,145 units).
Among imported used cars, the 5th-generation Mercedes-Benz E Class enjoyed the highest popularity with 14,516 units sold.
J. S. Shin (js_shin@koreabizwire.com)
