The cost of a used vehicle the year you turned 16
Eric Glenn // Shutterstock
The cost of a used vehicle the year you turned 16
Pre-owned Lexus cars in Columbus, Ohio.
The first car is almost never the dream car. It’s probably not the color you preferred, nor did it feature the sexiest trim. But it was appropriately priced, and it was going to get you from point A to point B.
That’s the beauty of the first car. It never needed to be much more than four wheels and a gas pedal that can be pressed any time our teenaged selves wanted a small taste of freedom: the freedom to visit the shop down the road, run errands for the parents, or meet with friends for milkshakes after class.
Stacker analyzed price index data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and used vehicle price data from Edmunds to compile this timeline of used vehicle prices from the year you first got behind the wheel. The BLS Consumer Price Index measures the price of goods and services relative to a point in time. The BLS index for used car and truck prices is indexed to the years 1982-1984.
Used vehicle prices made a record jump in price in 2021, driven by a shortage of inventory. U.S. auto manufacturers have experienced difficulties in recent years getting enough computer chips to complete the latest and greatest new vehicles. That shortage of new vehicles pushed more buyers into the used car market, seeking the best bang for their buck in a world where new vehicles were seeing unheard-of markups over manufacturers’ pricing. And more demand for used vehicles has meant higher prices—for now.
Used car prices have stopped growing as fast as they did in 2021, but the price of the average used car was just over $28,000 in the first quarter of 2023. Edmunds analysts also reported that by May 2023 used vehicles for $20,000 or less had become hard to find for buyers.
It’s not unheard of for used vehicle prices to fall in real dollars. The last time new drivers saw the average cost of used vehicles decline year over year was from 2012 to 2016—during the aftermath of the Great Recession.
Whether you’re in the market now and gawking at used car prices today, or reminiscing on the times when a solid used ride went for $4,000, take a spin through this look at the average price of a used vehicle from the year you got your license.
Newsday LLC // Getty Images
2021
Long Island traffic in 2021.
– Average used vehicle price: $26,500
MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle // Getty Images
2020
Cars on the 300 block of Penn Street looking West towards the Penn Street Bridge on Thursday, December 10, 2020, at dusk.
– Average used vehicle price: $20,935
MARK RALSTON // Getty Images
2019
Cars driving past an eight-story Carvana car vending machine.
– Average used vehicle price: $20,278
Portland Press Herald // Getty Images
2018
Ron’s Auto Sales, a used car dealership in Windham.
– Average used vehicle price: $20,077
Mark Wilson // Getty Images
2017
A dealership storing new cars in the parking lot at the Landmark Mall in Virginia.
– Average used vehicle price: $20,004
The Washington Post // Getty Images
2016
Vehicles in the lot on August 9, 2016, at Dave Arbogast Buick GMC in Troy, Ohio.
– Average used vehicle price: $20,815
Scott Olson // Getty Images
2015
A Volkswagen dealership on September 22, 2015, in Evanston, Illinois.
– Average used vehicle price: $21,365
Education Images // Getty Images
2014
South Boston townhouses with cars parked outside.
– Average used vehicle price: $21,640
San Francisco Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers // Getty Images
2013
Westbound California traffic in 2013.
– Average used vehicle price: $21,751
Al Seib // Getty Images
2012
Cars parked in California in 2012.
– Average used vehicle price: $21,809
Houston Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers // Getty Images
2011
Houston traffic in 2011.
– Average used vehicle price: $21,618
VW Pics // Getty Images
2010
Traffic passing a wind farm in the San Gorgonio Pass near Palm Springs.
– Average used vehicle price: $20,767
NurPhoto // Getty Images
2009
A NYC car park in 2009.
– Average used vehicle price: $18,426
Scott Olson // Getty Images
2008
A person shopping for a used car at Hamilton Avenue Auto Sales, a used car dealership in Brooklyn.
– Average used vehicle price: $19,436
Construction Photography/Avalon // Getty Images
2007
Traffic on Las Vegas Boulevard in 2007.
– Average used vehicle price: $19,698
Bob Riha Jr // Getty Images
2006
Cars driving down California’s Interstate 5 in 2006.
– Average used vehicle price: $20,313
Gregory Bojorquez // Getty Images
2005
American racer Cary Hart’s collection of cars in June 2005.
– Average used vehicle price: $20,225
Joe Sohm/Visions of America // Getty Images
2004
Rush hour traffic in Los Angeles.
– Average used vehicle price: $19,343
Bob Riha Jr // Getty Images
2003
A car driving down a remote road in 2003.
– Average used vehicle price: $20,735
Ken Hively // Getty Images
2002
Cars parked at a dealership in 2002.
– Average used vehicle price: $22,049
BRUCE WEAVER // Getty Images
2001
An automobile passing the gated community of Admira.
– Average used vehicle price: $23,025
Ricardo DeAratanha // Getty Images
2000
Highway traffic in March 2000.
– Average used vehicle price: $22,598
Jean-Erick PASQUIER // Getty Images
1999
A car driving down Rue de Santa Barbara in 1999.
– Average used vehicle price: $22,058
Wally Skalij // Getty Images
1998
Traffic into Los Angeles International Airport in 1998.
– Average used vehicle price: $21,842
Star Tribune // Getty Images
1997
Cars stuck in traffic in 1977.
– Average used vehicle price: $21,918
Steve Osman // Getty Images
1996
A truck on Ventura freeway in 1996.
– Average used vehicle price: $22,787
Jim Heimann Collection // Getty Images
1995
Cars parked outside El Pueblo bakery in 1995.
– Average used vehicle price: $22,698
Heritage Images // Getty Images
1994
Cars driving through New York in 1994.
– Average used vehicle price: $20,552
Joe Sohm/Visions of America // Getty Images
1993
A 1956 Chevrolet for sale in 1993.
– Average used vehicle price: $19,424
Rick Maiman // Getty Images
1992
American Pontiac cars ready for export at Port Newton.
– Average used vehicle price: $17,865
Joe Sohm/Visions of America // Getty Images
1991
A parking lot on the outskirts of Providence, Rhode Island.
– Average used vehicle price: $17,128
Jim Heimann Collection // Getty Images
1990
A car parked outside El Rinconcito Bar in 1990.
– Average used vehicle price: $17,046
Bob Riha Jr // Getty Images
1989
Los Angeles freeway traffic in 1989.
– Average used vehicle price: $17,475
William Nation // Getty Images
1988
Southern California freeway traffic in 1988.
– Average used vehicle price: $17,107
Steve Liss // Getty Images
1987
An aerial view of Boston highway traffic in 1987.
– Average used vehicle price: $16,402
Steve Liss // Getty Images
1986
An aerial view of a traffic jam in 1986.
– Average used vehicle price: $15,785
Jeffrey Markowitz // Getty Images
1985
Cars parked outside a suburban home in 1985.
– Average used vehicle price: $16,504
Universal History Archive // Getty Images
1984
Cars parked outside Days Cottages in 1984.
– Average used vehicle price: $16,324
William Nation // Getty Images
1983
Cars and shuttle buses driving through the green light as they go around the Los Angeles International Airport circa August 1983.
– Average used vehicle price: $14,328
Harold M. Lambert // Getty Images
1982
Cars driving down a highway in 1982.
– Average used vehicle price: $12,881
Andia // Getty Images
1981
Cars in a Manhattan street in 1981.
– Average used vehicle price: $11,151
Harold M. Lambert // Getty Images
1980
Pennsylvania highway traffic in 1980.
– Average used vehicle price: $9,033
H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock // Getty Images
1979
Traffic in 1979.
– Average used vehicle price: $8,734
H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock // Getty Images
1978
A 1978 train car loaded with different car models.
– Average used vehicle price: $8,100
Michael Ochs Archives // Getty Images
1977
A Cadillac Eldorado (left) alongside a Cadillac DeVille (second left), among a line of various models of Cadillac car, all black, in a parked lot in May 1977.
– Average used vehicle price: $7,955
Universal History Archive // Getty Images
1976
A drive-in restaurant with cars parked outside in 1976.
– Average used vehicle price: $7,293
ClassicStock // Getty Images
1975
A couple looking at a mesa formation next to their station wagon.
– Average used vehicle price: $6,366
Jim Steinfeldt // Getty Images
1974
Country Store in Baker, California featuring 1974 Cadillac Eldorado convertible.
– Average used vehicle price: $5,317
Bettmann // Getty Images
1973
Traffic on a Santa Monica highway in 1973.
– Average used vehicle price: $5,106
ClassicStock // Getty Images
1972
Freeway traffic in 1972.
– Average used vehicle price: $4,793
Jim Heimann Collection // Getty Images
1971
Cars parked outside Big Wheel Restaurant in 1971.
– Average used vehicle price: $4,784
Nik Wheeler // Getty Images
1970
Traffic jams on a Los Angeles freeway in 1970.
– Average used vehicle price: $4,525
ClassicStock // Getty Images
1969
The parking lot of the Mount Rushmore National Memorial in 1969.
– Average used vehicle price: $4,478
Scott McPartland // Getty Images
1968
A car parked outside the Cafe Baba of Israel in 1968.
– Average used vehicle price: $4,501
Harold M. Lambert // Getty Images
1967
An aerial view of traffic in 1967.
– Average used vehicle price: $4,345
Heritage Images // Getty Images
1966
A 1966 Dodge Monaco.
– Average used vehicle price: $4,213
Smith Collection/Gado // Contributor / Getty Images
1965
A car parked outside a family home in 1965.
– Average used vehicle price: $4,323
Scott McPartland // Getty Images
1964
Traffic on the Horace Harding Expressway in March 1964.
– Average used vehicle price: $4,346
Scott McPartland // Getty Images
1963
Cars parked outside White Front Department Store in 1963 in Los Angeles.
– Average used vehicle price: $4,170
Universal History Archive // Getty Images
1962
Cars parked outside Washington National Airport in July 1962.
– Average used vehicle price: $4,117
Universal History Archive // Getty Images
1961
Cars driving in Times Square in 1961.
– Average used vehicle price: $3,773
Scott McPartland // Getty Images
1960
Junction Boulevard motorists driving northbound in Queens’ Corona neighborhood.
– Average used vehicle price: $3,638
Data reporting by Dom DiFurio. Story editing by Jeff Inglis. Copy editing by Tim Bruns. Photo selection by Abigail Renaud.
