Many people in Germany are keeping an eye on climate change, but when it comes to cars, the priorities are different. Since 1990, the average performance of a car has increased by more than 67 hp. According to industry expert Dudenhöffer, one reason for this is the low fuel price.
The trend towards more and more motorized cars in Germany, which has been going on for decades, continues unabated. According to industry expert Ferdinand Dudenhöffer, the average new car had 159 HP last year, and this year the vehicles registered between January and May even had an average of 166 HP. At the same time, the proportion of small cars in new registrations fell further from 20 to 18 percent.
Even in times of crisis such as the recession after reunification in 1993 and the euro crisis in 2012/13, the horsepower of new vehicles rose. While the average new car in Germany still had 92 HP in 1990, the engine output continued to grow to 131 HP until the 2008 financial crisis.
The only decline in the past 30 years, according to Dudenhöffer, was in 2009 when the scrappage bonus rocketed the share of small cars in new vehicles to 34 percent and the average engine output dropped to 118 hp. But in the following year the previous level was reached again, and since then the horsepower has continued to increase year after year.
Dudenhöffer’s forecast: “Even after the Covid 19 pandemic, the horsepower of new cars in Germany will increase.” With the current fuel prices, the incentive to “buy the car one size smaller” is low. Higher purchase prices would be accepted after a certain time. The engines would be more climate-friendly, “but cars with higher horsepower will most likely continue to shape our streets in the future. Long data series from the past suggest that.”
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