What is ‘average’ mileage for a used car?

Glass’s Market Intelligence Service has carried out an analysis of over 200,00 cars to challenge the generally accepted mileage of 12,000 miles per year for a used car.

"The results show some big deviations from the perceived average," says Alan Cole, consultant for Glass’s Market Intelligence Service.

"It is also clear that diesel cars still fit the stereotype of covering more miles each year compared to their petrol counterparts."

Small cars (e.g. Renault Clio, Toyota Yaris, etc)
Glass’s found that the average annual mileage for one- to three-year-old cars from this sector was 8,500 miles. Diesel cars from this sector do not clock up the high mileages covered by larger diesel vehicles. Glass’s analysis shows that the overall average annual mileage for diesel variants was 10,100 miles.

? Lower-medium cars (e.g. Ford Focus, Vauxhall Astra, etc)
One- to three-year-old cars from this sector covered, on average, 11,200 miles each year. This increased significantly for diesel variants, to 15,300 miles per year.

Upper-medium cars (e.g. Toyota Avensis, Audi A4, etc)
One- to three-year-old upper-medium cars averaged 16,400 miles each year – the highest of any car sector in the UK. This is not surprising given that company fleets use this size of car quite extensively for business purposes. The mileage of one-year-old examples was significantly lower, at 11,400 miles. Upper-medium diesel variants cover the highest annual mileage of all sectors, averaging 18,100 miles.

Large cars (e.g. Vauxhall Omega, BMW 5 Series, etc)
The average mileage for one- to three-year-old large cars was 15,900 miles. The mileage of one-year-old examples was considerably lower, at 10,900 miles. Diesel mileage is again higher, at 17,100 per annum for one- to three-year-olds, rising to 21,500 for three- to six-year old examples.

Coupés and convertibles (e.g. Mercedes-Benz CLK, Peugeot 307 CC, etc)
The average annual mileage for one- to three-year-old petrol and diesel cars from this sector was 11,600 miles.

MPVs (Renault Mégane Scenic, Ford Galaxy, etc)
Grouping compact and full-sized MPVs together, the average annual mileage for cars up to three-years-old was 9,700 miles. One-year-old examples covered an even lower average of 8,700 miles, while diesel versions across the whole age range averaged 14,800 miles per annum.

4x4s (e.g. Honda HRV, Range Rover, etc)
The average annual mileage for vehicles in the 4x4 segment up to three-years-old was 12,400 miles, rising to 13,600 miles for diesel examples.