The details: Three-year-old vehicles have long been considered the sweet spot for cost-conscious shoppers—but current model-year used cars became the value leaders in Q4, with older options spending more time on dealer lots.
In Q4, 3-year-old used vehicles had an average transaction price (ATP) of $30,699 and spent an average of 45 days on dealer lots before selling—the longest Q4 selling time since 2017.
2025 model-year cars sold for an average of $6,370 less than new during the same period, and accounted for one-in-12 used vehicles sold, underscoring buyers’ interest in the newest used models.
What they’re saying: “Each fourth quarter, seasonality in the used car market creates a brief window where the newest used vehicles become more visible,” said Edmunds, per the report. “In Q4 2025, that window revealed a pricing dynamic that challenged a long-standing assumption about used-car value.”
Why it matters: If shoppers are increasingly cross-shopping near-new used against new, the right late-model inventory can drive faster turns, protect grosses, and create cleaner F&I opportunities—while slow-moving 3-year-old units may need sharper pricing and tighter acquisition discipline.
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Between the lines: Sales of current-model used cars—driven largely by a like-for-like match with a comparable new model—vary by segment, with higher-mileage vehicles delivering bigger discounts.
SUVs and cars, where comparability is high, accounted for 85.4% of current model-year used vehicle sales (60.7% SUVs and 24.7% cars) in Q4, compared with 74.3% of total new-vehicle sales.
Pickups, which make up 20.8% of new vehicles sold, account for just 12.5% of current model-year used sales due to a wide range of configurations that limits comparable options.
The top five most frequently purchased current models in Q4 were the Toyota Camry at a difference of $4,701 from new ATP, Honda CR-V ($3,615), Ram 1500 ($15,630), Honda Civic ($2,477), and Toyota Rav4 ($3,937).
Current model-year used vehicles with less than 10,000 miles accounted for roughly 60% of sales in Q4 2025, with models exceeding 15,000 miles seeing discounts of more than $10,000—signaling what could become a more consistent trend in 2026.
“Even as the used market has continued to normalize, the combined Q4 2025 and early-2026 data reinforces a broader lesson: value in the used market does not always surface where shoppers expect it to,” Edmunds said in its report. “Under certain pricing and inventory conditions, newer used vehicles can challenge traditional benchmarks, reshaping value comparisons across new and used options.”
Bottom line: The “sweet spot” is shifting in pockets of the market. Dealers should lean into late-model sourcing where the new-to-used price gap is compelling, merchandise near-new units aggressively against new alternatives, and stay disciplined on 3-year-old acquisitions and pricing as days-to-turn stretches.
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