RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – A decade ago, Dilma Rousseff became the first female president of Brazil. The year 2011 began with a tragedy in the mountainous region of Rio, killing 900 people and leaving countless people homeless.
In the automobile market, the cheapest car in the country was a Chevrolet Celta, with an average value of R$24,700. The Volkswagen Voyage was considered expensive: it cost R$39,500, on average. According to a study by KBB Brazil, a company specialized in new and used car price research, the average price of the ten best-selling cars of the time was around R$33,300.
Now, in 2021, only the Volkswagen Gol appears on both lists. And the prices? The average value of these ten cars is 189.6% higher than a decade ago. Of the best-selling models (Fenabrave ranking) in 2011, all from first to the tenth position belonged to the compact entry categories (hatch or sedan).
Today, up to the tenth position, four models are SUVs. The most expensive one is the Jeep Compass, at R$ 187,100. And the car with the lowest average price in the Top 10 is the Renault Kwid, at R$ 49,300. With this, the average cost of the top ten best-sellers of 2021 is almost three times higher than in 2011 (an incredible R$96,300).
KBB’s work shows how much the profile of the best-selling cars in the country has changed compared to ten years ago. At that time, the Brazilian market accumulated almost 3.5 million licensed 0km units per year – and the best-selling vehicles were all considered popular. Today, only two models could fit into this category (with reservations as to the actual accessibility due to the higher average price).
Brazil is once again practicing, shall we say, other strange things. The market for semi-new and used cars is so hot that some models cost more than a brand new car. On InstaCarro, a platform that helps sell used cars, some used models are up to 33% more expensive than new ones.
“The ratio between new and used car sales is at its highest point in the entire historical series conducted since 2004 by Bradesco. For every new car sold in the year, 6.5 used cars were sold,” says InstaCarro CEO Luca Cafici.
In September, the platform, which determines the highest values in relation to the Fipe table of the vehicles negotiated by it, identified the Hyundai Tucson 2018 with an appreciation of 33.5%, emerging as the first place in a ranking. The Chevrolet Tracker 2021 appreciated 12.88%, taking second place, followed by the Mitsubishi L200 Triton 2018, with 10.3%.
It is worth remembering the Cruzado Plan in Brazil (at the end of the 1980s) in which used cars were more sought after than new ones. Now, models appreciate 20% in one year – when the logic would be to lose 20% of their face value.
New car? In the last months, using the previous 12 months for comparison, the average new car price rose 10% – the inflation rate that most expect to have at the end of this year.