The furrows do not spoil: What is happening in the used car market

In April, sales of used passenger cars exceeded half a million. "Age-related" and cheap Frets remain the most in demand on the secondary market, and Toyota is traditionally the leader among foreign cars. Despite the stability of the tip of the iceberg, changes are taking place inside, and gradually other cars are taking over the market. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.

Bestsellers of the second freshness

According to the Autostat agency, in April, Russians purchased 542.2 thousand used passenger cars, which is 14.1% more than in March 2026, and 6.4% higher than the result of April last year.

The set of leading brands is traditional. Lada is in the lead: in the second month of spring, 126.1 thousand used cars of the domestic brand were purchased. Toyota retains the second place with a score of 56.4 thousand units. This is followed by Kia and Hyundai (29.7 thousand and 28.8 thousand units, respectively), Volkswagen closes the top five (24.5 thousand units).

Nissan, Honda, Chevrolet, Renault and Ford joined the top 10 brands in terms of used car sales in April.

Negative dynamics in annual comparison is observed only for Lada (-6.8%). The remaining nine brands showed growth, with Honda adding the most (+22.8%).

The most popular model among used passenger cars was the Lada 2107 sedan: in April, Russians bought 10.5 thousand. "sevens." Interestingly, the Kia Rio became the bestseller in January and February, and the Seven first came out on top in March 2026.

Now Kia Rio is in second place, and Hyundai Solaris is in third, with 10.3 thousand and 10 thousand units, respectively. Next are the classic Lada 4x4 SUV (Niva) and Toyota Corolla, they have almost the same April results (9,5 thousand units each).

The top ten most popular used cars in April also included Ford Focus, Lada 2114 (Samara-2), Lada 2170 (Priora), Lada 2190 (Granta) and Toyota Camry.

Compared to March, all models turned out to be "in the black", and Kia Rio's sales figures increased the most (+18.3%). Compared to April 2025, 7 out of 10 models also showed growth. Only the Seven (-19.3%), the fourteenth (-15%) and the Prior sedan (-7.9%) had negative market dynamics.

In just the first four months of 2026, Russians became owners of 1.86 million used passenger cars, which is 5.1% more than in January—April last year.

Redistribution of demand

Buyers have actively entered the secondary market, says Igor Morzharetto, partner at Autostat.

"Sales in the secondary market are really growing, prices have stabilized and there are quite a lot of different offers," he said.

The volume of sales in the used market suggests that fewer new cars will be bought, says Maxim Kadakov, editor-in-chief of Za Rulem.

However, Vadim Chernousov, sales Director of Rolf used cars, is confident that the growth in used car sales does not mean a direct rejection of new cars.

— It is rather a redistribution of demand: the buyer compares the price, cost of ownership, financing conditions and liquidity. In some cases, a high—quality used car with a transparent history becomes a more rational choice," he noted

Rolfe's April growth in the used car market is attributed to a seasonal revival in demand. Spring is traditionally an active period for the secondary market: some customers return to deferred purchases, while others choose a car before the summer season.

The increase in resale in April is not a one—time surge, but a reflection of how the purchase model in the country has changed, Irina Frank, CEO of Frank Auto, told Izvestia.

— There are already about five used cars per new car. The buyer massively chooses a car for two to five years: with a comparable budget, it provides more class, options and predictability in service than a new car of comparable price, she believes.

Stability and scarcity

In general, the used car market is more stable: it fluctuated and failed not as much as the primary one, Autostat notes. The weighted average price (1.21 million rubles) did not grow compared to the previous month, but showed an increase of 6% compared to April last year. The fact is that 67% of cars on the secondary market are over 11 years old, their average price is below one million and it practically does not fluctuate. Prices for cars that are more recent, up to 5 years old, are changing, and these fluctuations are related to the prices of new cars.

Fresh cars of global brands with a transparent history, low mileage and a minimal number of owners turned out to be in short supply, Vadim Chernousov said.

According to Irina Frank, the shortage in the secondary sector is spotty, but steady. First of all, these are the most liquid models in the budget and mid-price segments.: Kia Rio and Hyundai Solaris. In the crossover segment, there is an acute shortage of Kia Rio X-Line and Hyundai Creta in good condition, as well as Toyota RAV4 and Toyota Corolla. Japanese SUVs Toyota Land Cruiser Prado, Hilux, Mitsubishi Pajero Sport are a separate story. Their supply is limited, and demand from regions and businesses is stable.

Asian replenishment

The secondary market is replenished by imports from the Asia-Pacific region, primarily from Japan, which accounted for 60% of total shipments in April. Traditionally, low-capacity right-hand drive cars are brought from there.

This is followed by China and South Korea, with shipments from the latter noticeably reduced. Autostat explains this by changes in the rules for calculating scrap collection for cars with a capacity of over 160 hp. They were the basis for imports to Russia from South Korea. At the same time, the choice of low-power cars there is not as large as in China. However, even in shipments from China until December 1, 2025, the share of cars more powerful than 160 hp was 60%, now it has decreased to 2%, and most of the imports come from cars with 140-160 hp engines. The most common model on the secondary market imported from China is again the Toyota Corolla.

Trust in Chinese brand cars in the secondary market is gradually growing, says Alexander Shaprinsky, director of the Pragmatika dealership network. He noted that the share of Chinese brands in the structure of used car sales will increase and this year is becoming a key year for them. Usually, owners of Chinese cars are ready to replace them with new ones within 3-4 years after purchase. Now this period is suitable for cars purchased in 2022-2023, when the presence of the brand from China began to actively expand in the Russian market.

The mass release of Chinese cars into the secondary market is already underway, Irina Frank said. Firstly, cars purchased in 2022-2023 in the wake of the departure of European and Korean brands are entering the market as the owners of the car change.

Secondly, cars from corporate fleets and leasing get there. In 2026, the share of Chinese brands in leasing actually doubled year-on-year, and after a standard 2-3 years, these cars will begin to return to sale en masse. The third source is the parallel import of used cars from China itself, the volume of which is still more modest than that of Japan, but it is growing.

In the first four months of this year, sales of used Chinese cars increased by 45.5%, to 105.5 thousand units, according to Autostat. In the meantime, their share in total sales is small, says Sergey Tselikov, CEO of Autostat, but in the segment of cars produced in 2022-2025 it reaches an impressive 40%. The most common Chinese brand cars in the secondary market were the Chery (20.8%), Geely (17.7%) and Haval (14.6%) models.