Geopolitical uncertainty, high interest rates, and equally high gasoline prices are making consumers hesitate when buying a car.
Private customers, in particular, are looking for good deals more than ever; they gather thorough information and want maximum certainty. Yet they keep buying cars, mostly used ones, including electric vehicles.
Private individuals consistently focus on a car’s monthly cost to ensure their available monthly budget is sufficient. Companies, on the other hand, face uncertainty regarding the mobility budget and its impact on their fleet policy.
More and more EVs
“With 537,864 registered vehicles, the used-car market is performing slightly less well in the first nine months of 2026 (-3.3%) than in the previous year and 2024 (-2.4%), yet it remains ahead of 2023 (+3.6%),” explains Filip Rylant, spokesperson for the mobility federation Traxio.
Higher fuel prices are increasingly pushing private customers toward fully electric vehicles, whether new or used. This trend is especially evident in the new car market – where EVs held a 20.2% market share in September – but also in the used car market, where EVs now account for exactly 6%, up from 4.1% in 2025.
The turnover rate for used EVs has already dropped sharply compared to last year, meaning some sought-after models – namely affordable electric cars – are already hard to find.
Diesel continues to decline
Incidentally, the second-hand market remains primarily a matter for private individuals: their share of used car registrations stands at no less than 91.2%. The used car market remains dominated by gasoline engines (55.9%), followed by diesel (22.1%), hybrids (15.4%), and electric cars (6.0%).
Hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and electric models are increasingly becoming the norm among both private and professional customers. The share of diesel vehicles continues to decline, also in the used car market.
Companies, by contrast, are rarely seen in the second-hand market, except for used electric vehicles: just over half (53%) are registered to companies and leasing or rental firms. However, that increase is still insufficient to absorb the number of EVs coming off lease contracts.
Volkswagen
Volkswagen was the best-selling used car brand this year, ahead of BMW, Mercedes, Peugeot, and Opel. The most popular models were the VW Golf (20,925), followed by the VW Polo (15,107), the Opel Corsa (13,337), the BMW 3 Series (11,507), and the BMW 1 Series (10,407).
The new vehicle market performed slightly worse in the first nine months than the previous year, with 320,374 registrations (-1.1%). The decline is primarily attributable to the fleet market.
Average age
Private buyers are increasingly purchasing new electric cars: for the first time, EVs have captured more than 20% market share in the new-car market for private buyers.
In September, 50.9% of new registrations in Belgium were electric cars. Of total new and used car registrations, the used-car market accounts for nearly 63%.
The average age of used cars stands at 10 years and 2 months; the median age is now 8 years and 1 month. This indicates that the total vehicle fleet is aging significantly, which undermines the shift toward greener vehicles and emissions reduction.
Flanders is Belgium’s largest region for second-hand passenger car registrations, accounting for 55.1%, while Wallonia accounts for 36.8%, and Brussels for 8.1%.
