Lorraine Williamson
Spain’s roads are telling a quiet story about household budgets, uncertainty, and a car market that no longer works the way it used to. The average passenger car in Spain is now over 14 years old, putting Spain among the oldest vehicle fleets in the European Union, according to new figures highlighted by consumer group OCU.
That headline number matters because it is not just about nostalgia for older models. It shows how slowly Spain is renewing its fleet at the same time as cities tighten emissions rules and modern safety tech becomes the norm elsewhere.
Why Spain is keeping cars longer
The most obvious driver is price. New cars have become significantly more expensive, and many families are choosing to delay big purchases. The alternative, increasingly, is the used market, which keeps older cars circulating rather than replacing them.
A second factor is the uneven transition to electric. In parts of Spain, charging access is still patchy, especially for people who live in apartments without private parking. For many drivers, the switch still feels like a leap rather than a step.
Industry data backs up the trend. ANFAC has reported Spain’s average car age to be around 14.5 years in 2024, with a rising share of vehicles over 20 years old.
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Why it matters: safety, air quality and everyday running costs
Older cars tend to lack the safety systems now common in newer vehicles, such as automatic emergency braking and lane assistance. That does not mean every older car is unsafe. It does mean the fleet, as a whole, is missing a generation of protective technology.
Emissions are the other pressure point. Older engines generally pollute more, and that becomes a bigger issue as more Spanish cities enforce low-emission zones.
There is also a third effect people feel first: maintenance. The longer a car stays on the road, the more owners spend on repairs, tyres, and keeping up with inspections. An ageing fleet often looks like “saving money” right up until a major repair arrives.
Spain vs Europe: how far behind is the fleet?
The European car fleet average is about 12.3 years, according to ACEA. Spain sits above that benchmark.
That gap is not enormous on paper. On the road, it can be the difference between a fleet dominated by cars with modern emissions controls and safety features, and one where many daily drivers pre-date the big shifts of the 2010s.
What could change in 2026
If Spain wants the fleet to get younger, the lever is not moral persuasion. It is incentives and affordability.
OCU has long argued for policies that make renewal realistic, such as scrappage support for the oldest vehicles and clearer help for drivers who need low-emission options.
The market may also shift from the supply side. Chinese brands have been expanding rapidly in Spain, targeting price-sensitive buyers and bringing more electrified models into showrooms.
The central question is whether those forces translate into a faster replacement cycle — or whether Spain simply continues to stretch the life of cars that were never designed to carry the next decade of transport policy on their backs.