Russian Automotive Fleet Rapidly Aging

ST. PETERSBURG – The Russian automotive fleet is rapidly aging, as Western sanctions and economic decline in Russia limit supplies of new cars and spare parts for them and force car owners to forgo maintenance.

According to Fit Service, a Russian network of car service centers, the average age of cars in the country is more than 14 years. Moreover, the share of cars aged 15 years or more has increased significantly over the past year, from 25% to 35%.

Tatyana Ovchinnikova, head of the Fit Service network, recently said in an interview with the Rossiyskaya Gazeta business paper that the rapid increase of cars’ average age in Russia means repairs will become more complex and costly in coming years.

“At present we see that the country’s automotive fleet is rapidly aging, while the current (low) volumes of supplies of new cars to Russia cannot ensure its renewal,” she says. “Many car owners strive to drive their cars for as long as possible and for this purpose they take care of them, not using them when possible.”

The situation is complicated because China currently is the only exporter of cars to Russia, and its products sell for very high prices.

Experts say the aging of the automotive fleet is leading to a reduction in the number of cars on Russian roads.

According to automotive consultancy Gruzdev Analyze, the number of cars in Russia fell by 822,000 in 2022. While official figures for 2023 have not yet been published, most analysts expect a similar decrease. The fleet is expected to shrink more quickly in 2024.

In Russia, the standard service life of a car is 10 years. Yet a significant portion of the country’s automotive fleet includes cars 15-20 years old with mileage of 186,000-249,000 miles (300,000-400,000 km) and even higher.

As the fleet ages more accidents (pictured, below) are occurring on Russian roads because of technical faults and malfunctions. Data from the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs’ Scientific Center for Road Safety shows there were 96,800 road accidents in a 9-month period in 2023, almost 5% higher than a year earlier.

The share of accidents, Russian analysts believe,  due to technical malfunctions is rapidly growing and is expected to increase significantly by the end of this year.

The increase in the service life of vehicles reflects the overall crisis in Russia’s auto industry. High interest rates on loans and high prices are forcing Russians to continue driving their old cars. In addition, some spare parts are in short supply and car owners are delaying or avoiding increasingly expensive maintenance.

According to Wards Intelligence data, 936,005 light vehicles were sold in Russia in 2023, up 36.2% from 687,370 a year earlier. Chinese brands Chang’an, Chery, FAW, Great Wall, Guangtong, Lifan and Zhejiang Geely all saw triple-digit sales increases year-over-year.