The proportion of new passenger cars sold that are powered by diesel engines has shrunk to 27.2%. As recently as 2011, more than half of all vehicles were still diesel-powered, as shown in a new infographic from Kryptoszene.de. Prices of cars sold have simultaneously climbed considerably.
As the infographic shows, there are considerable differences between car manufacturers: while almost every second vehicle made by BMW will still be fitted with a diesel engine in 2020, just 14.8% of vehicles from Renault will still run on diesel. German manufacturers Mercedes and Volkswagen continue to sell an above-average number of diesels, with shares of 47.8% and 46.1% respectively. This was the result of data from the Federal Motor Vehicle and Transport Authority.
Germans paid an average of €37,710 for a new car in the year of the corona crisis, according to a study by the Center Automotive Research. The average price in 2009 was just €21,770, meaning an increase of 73.2%.
Car Nation Germany
Meanwhile, in a European comparison Germans rely on relatively outdated cars. The average age of a vehicle is 9.5 years. The average Austrian drives a car that is 8.2 years old, while the Brit’s average car is 8 years old.
Germans’ readiness to buy a new car is steadily declining. In 2018, 2.32 million people planned to buy a new vehicle, while this year the figure was 1.9 million.
