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The cost of a used vehicle the year you turned 16

·Dom DiFurio

H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock // Getty Images
H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock // Getty Images
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The first car is rarely the dream car. It's probably not the color you preferred, nor did it feature the coolest trim. But it was appropriately priced and would 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 teenage 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 cost of goods and services relative to a point in time. The BLS index for used car and truck prices is from 1982 to 1984.

The prices of used cars have fluctuated significantly in recent years, particularly in 2025, when prices shot up due to inventory shortages and President Donald Trump's tariffs on imported cars and car parts. More recently, used car costs have taken a slight downturn—the Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index, which tracks wholesale used car prices, dropped by 0.5% between July and August 2026. However, that doesn't mean car buyers will necessarily be able to score a deal, as the index is still up slightly year-over-year.

If you're wondering exactly what that means in terms of price tags, the most recent available data from Edmunds put the average price of a three-year-old used car at $32,461 in the second quarter of 2026. For context, that's up 4% from a year prior, and 15.5% from 2021. And as sticker shock sets in, used car sales have slowed accordingly. Edmunds reported that the average used car spent 45 days on the lot during the fourth quarter of 2025, the slowest sales pace seen in any fourth quarter since 2017.

Whether you're in the market now and gawking at used car prices today, or reminiscing on when a solid used ride went for $4,000, take a spin through this look at the average cost of a used vehicle from the year you got your license.

You may also like: How gas prices have changed in the U.S. in the last week Feb. 23, 2026

Junction Boulevard motorists driving northbound in Queens' Corona neighborhood.

Scott McPartland // Getty Images

1 / 66

1960

- Average used vehicle price: $3,638

Cars driving in Times Square in 1961.

Universal History Archive // Getty Images

2 / 66

1961

- Average used vehicle price: $3,773

Cars parked outside Washington National Airport in July 1962.

Universal History Archive // Getty Images

3 / 66

1962

- Average used vehicle price: $4,117

Cars parked outside White Front Department Store in 1963 in Los Angeles.

Scott McPartland // Getty Images

4 / 66

1963

- Average used vehicle price: $4,170

A car parked outside a family home in 1965.

Smith Collection/Gado // Contributor / Getty Images

6 / 66

1965

- Average used vehicle price: $4,323

A 1966 Dodge Monaco.

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7 / 66

1966

- Average used vehicle price: $4,213

An aerial view of traffic in 1967.

Harold M. Lambert // Getty Images

8 / 66

1967

- Average used vehicle price: $4,345

A car parked outside the Cafe Baba of Israel in 1968.

Scott McPartland // Getty Images

9 / 66

1968

- Average used vehicle price: $4,501

Traffic jams on a Los Angeles freeway in 1970.

Nik Wheeler // Getty Images

11 / 66

1970

- Average used vehicle price: $4,525

Cars parked outside Big Wheel Restaurant in 1971.

Jim Heimann Collection // Getty Images

12 / 66

1971

- Average used vehicle price: $4,784

Freeway traffic in 1972.

ClassicStock // Getty Images

13 / 66

1972

- Average used vehicle price: $4,793

Traffic on a Santa Monica highway in 1973.

Bettmann // Getty Images

14 / 66

1973

- Average used vehicle price: $5,106

A couple looking at a mesa formation next to their station wagon.

ClassicStock // Getty Images

16 / 66

1975

- Average used vehicle price: $6,366

A drive-in restaurant with cars parked outside in 1976.

Universal History Archive // Getty Images

17 / 66

1976

- Average used vehicle price: $7,293

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.

Michael Ochs Archives // Getty Images

18 / 66

1977

- Average used vehicle price: $7,955

A 1978 train car loaded with different car models.

H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock // Getty Images

19 / 66

1978

- Average used vehicle price: $8,100

Pennsylvania highway traffic in 1980.

Harold M. Lambert // Getty Images

21 / 66

1980

- Average used vehicle price: $9,033

Cars in a Manhattan street in 1981.

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22 / 66

1981

- Average used vehicle price: $11,151

Cars driving down a highway in 1982.

Harold M. Lambert // Getty Images

23 / 66

1982

- Average used vehicle price: $12,881

Cars and shuttle buses driving through the green light as they go around the Los Angeles International Airport circa August 1983.

William Nation // Getty Images

24 / 66

1983

- Average used vehicle price: $14,328

Cars parked outside a suburban home in 1985.

Jeffrey Markowitz // Getty Images

26 / 66

1985

- Average used vehicle price: $16,504

An aerial view of a traffic jam in 1986.

Steve Liss // Getty Images

27 / 66

1986

- Average used vehicle price: $15,785

An aerial view of Boston highway traffic in 1987.

Steve Liss // Getty Images

28 / 66

1987

- Average used vehicle price: $16,402

Southern California freeway traffic in 1988.

William Nation // Getty Images

29 / 66

1988

- Average used vehicle price: $17,107

A car parked outside El Rinconcito Bar in 1990.

Jim Heimann Collection // Getty Images

31 / 66

1990

- Average used vehicle price: $17,046

A parking lot on the outskirts of Providence, Rhode Island.

Joe Sohm/Visions of America // Getty Images

32 / 66

1991

- Average used vehicle price: $17,128

American Pontiac cars ready for export at Port Newton.

Rick Maiman // Getty Images

33 / 66

1992

- Average used vehicle price: $17,865

A 1956 Chevrolet for sale in 1993.

Joe Sohm/Visions of America // Getty Images

34 / 66

1993

- Average used vehicle price: $19,424

Cars parked outside El Pueblo bakery in 1995.

Jim Heimann Collection // Getty Images

36 / 66

1995

- Average used vehicle price: $22,698

A truck on Ventura freeway in 1996.

Steve Osman // Getty Images

37 / 66

1996

- Average used vehicle price: $22,787

Cars stuck in traffic in 1977.

Star Tribune // Getty Images

38 / 66

1997

- Average used vehicle price: $21,918

Traffic into Los Angeles International Airport in 1998.

Wally Skalij // Getty Images

39 / 66

1998

- Average used vehicle price: $21,842

Highway traffic in March 2000.

Ricardo DeAratanha // Getty Images

41 / 66

2000

- Average used vehicle price: $22,598

An automobile passing the gated community of Admira.

BRUCE WEAVER // Getty Images

42 / 66

2001

- Average used vehicle price: $23,025

Cars parked at a dealership in 2002.

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43 / 66

2002

- Average used vehicle price: $22,049

A car driving down a remote road in 2003.

Bob Riha Jr // Getty Images

44 / 66

2003

- Average used vehicle price: $20,735

American racer Cary Hart's collection of cars in June 2005.

Gregory Bojorquez // Getty Images

46 / 66

2005

- Average used vehicle price: $20,225

Cars driving down California's Interstate 5 in 2006.

Bob Riha Jr // Getty Images

47 / 66

2006

- Average used vehicle price: $20,313

Traffic on Las Vegas Boulevard in 2007.

Construction Photography/Avalon // Getty Images

48 / 66

2007

- Average used vehicle price: $19,698

A person shopping for a used car at Hamilton Avenue Auto Sales, a used car dealership in Brooklyn.

Scott Olson // Getty Images

49 / 66

2008

- Average used vehicle price: $19,436

Traffic passing a wind farm in the San Gorgonio Pass near Palm Springs.

VW Pics // Getty Images

51 / 66

2010

- Average used vehicle price: $20,767

Houston traffic in 2011.

Houston Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers // Getty Images

52 / 66

2011

- Average used vehicle price: $21,618

Cars parked in California in 2012.

Al Seib // Getty Images

53 / 66

2012

- Average used vehicle price: $21,809

Westbound California traffic in 2013.

San Francisco Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers // Getty Images

54 / 66

2013

- Average used vehicle price: $21,751

A Volkswagen dealership on September 22, 2015, in Evanston, Illinois.

Scott Olson // Getty Images

56 / 66

2015

- Average used vehicle price: $21,365

Vehicles in the lot on August 9, 2016, at Dave Arbogast Buick GMC in Troy, Ohio.

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57 / 66

2016

- Average used vehicle price: $20,815

A dealership storing new cars in the parking lot at the Landmark Mall in Virginia.

Mark Wilson // Getty Images

58 / 66

2017

- Average used vehicle price: $20,004

Ron's Auto Sales, a used car dealership in Windham.

Portland Press Herald // Getty Images

59 / 66

2018

- Average used vehicle price: $20,077

Cars on the 300 block of Penn Street looking West towards the Penn Street Bridge on Thursday, December 10, 2020, at dusk.

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61 / 66

2020

- Average used vehicle price: $20,935

Long Island traffic in 2021.

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62 / 66

2021

- Average used vehicle price: $26,500

Data reporting by Dom DiFurio. Story editing by Jeff Inglis. Copy editing by Tim Bruns. Photo selection by Abigail Renaud.

Used car for sale with big signs on the windshield that say Buy here Pay Here

Jonathan Weiss // Shutterstock

63 / 66

2022

- Average used vehicle price: $28,205

(Note: 2022 saw peak used car prices due to pandemic-related supply constraints and the semiconductor chip shortage. The Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index hit record highs.)

Used car lot in San Jose called Amigos with four cars out front with their hoods up to hold signs that spell out SALE

Tada Images // Shutterstock

64 / 66

2023

- Average used vehicle price: $27,000

(Prices began stabilizing after the pandemic surge, with the BLS reporting new and used car prices declined 6.4% in 2023.)

Lafayette - August 27, 2025: Used car display at a dealership. With pricing issues, used and preowned cars are in high demand.

Jonathan Weiss // Shutterstock

66 / 66

2025

- Average used vehicle price: $31,067

 

(Used car prices climbed throughout 2025 due to tariff concerns and ongoing inventory constraints. The average price for a 3-year-old used vehicle reached $31,067 in Q3 2025, approaching the record high of $31,628 set in Q2 2022.)

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