BY Andrew Marsh, Engineering Director, Auto Industry Consulting Ltd In part one, we looked at some of the background to the current shape of the UK vehicle market and especially the policies which are shaping it now. There can be little doubt the effects are profound – and the effect of those changes were explored in part two. There will be a big change in how customers interact with the aftermarket, driven by recession in 2023 running into 2024 and the transition to pure electric vehicles as a small but growing market segment. There is also the possibility internal combustion engine vehicles will routinely reach 15 years old or more, as owners look to prolong their life. The market change-over is going to be driven by the vehicle purchase price, confidence in the reliability/performance and dependability/availability of the charger network. Every single one of these aspects is huge. China has strategically seen automobiles as a key export, with the main success confined to building vehicles for ‘foreign’ manufacturers. The domestic manufacturers have had massive state support to create the biggest pure electric vehicle market in the world, and of course, the biggest vehicle market in the world too. That’s right – China is hungry for all types of vehicles with all types of powertrains. After 40 years of trying, the China domestic vehicle manufacturers are armed with the biggest supply of Li34 AFTERMARKET APRIL 2023 TECHNICAL www.aftermarketonline.net PART THREE: A TALE OF THE UK MARKET Andrew rounds up his look at the shape of the UK car market by considering the potential opportunities for the aftermarket Ion batteries in the world, scale of economy due to the biggest pure electric market in the world and a government keen to translate that into foreign exchange. This lines up perfectly with the otherwise unsupported vision of mass pure electric vehicle adoption not only in the UK but right across the EU27. Starting in 2023 the big push to get pure electric vehicles in place in Europe will begin, and the first wave of transporter ships were loaded up at the end of 2022, just as some Chinese provinces came out of lockdown. Apart from established players such as the SAIC MG Motor and Maxus, most of these newcomers will land with almost no product support, a significant purchase price advantage
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