Cycle of Car Life
Used-car shopping website SK Encar announced on October 10 that in a survey of car replacement cycles and reasons for auto replacement involving 325 people, 28.3% of respondents said that they replace their vehicles every three to five years. 21.9% of people said every five to seven years, with the next most popular response of 14.5% saying every 1-3 years, 11.4% with 7-9 years, and 10.8% saying 9-11 years.
An official at SK Encar said, “A lot of people consider changing their cars, since replacement costs for main auto parts or expendable parts are high in three years of car purchases. In particular, most import cars are covered for free service during the first three years, auto part prices and auto repair costs for foreign cars are higher than those of domestic vehicles. So, many people sell their cars when the warranty expires.”
31.7% of those surveyed said that they replace their cars in order to have a new one with higher performance. 20.6% of people expressed their preference for a new car with better design. A different car type (10.8%) and a new car with a low mileage (10.2%) were also cited as reasons for replacement.