Newly released data from scrap price comparison service Scrap Car Comparison has revealed the makes and models of car that hit the scrap heap most frequently in 2024.

This is based on the provider’s internal data from the last 12 months, with popular brands as the common theme.

Focal point

Scrap Car Comparison’s data has revealed the Ford Focus as the UK’s most scrapped car model for 2024, for the eighth consecutive year.

The Focus topped the charts as the most sold vehicle in the UK for much of the 2000s. Many of the cars sold during this period may now be coming to the end of their lives after 20 years on the road, which may explain why the Focus has topped the charts for much of the last decade.

The proportion of vehicles scrapped this year has also increased, making up 6.3% of all vehicles, up 2% from 2023.

Corporate casualties 

The Vauxhall Astra and Vauxhall Corsa follow as the second and third most scrapped models of 2023, with the Ford Fiesta and Volkswagen Golf completing the top five – a top flight which has been very consistent throughout recent years.

Alongside the Ford Focus, all of these models sold in high numbers from 2000-2010, and with the average age of cars scrapped by Scrap Car Comparison in 2024 sitting at 17 years, many of them may have now become unviable to keep on the roads due to high repair costs.  

 The Peugeot 207 and Volkswagen Polo complete the top 10 for 2024, entering in place of the BMW 3 Series, and Ford Transit which have fallen outside of the most scrapped models this year, instead sitting in 14th and 12th positions respectively.

Evolution

Again, both the Peugeot 207 and Volkswagen Polo featured among the most popular vehicles in the earlier part of the century, so time may be against them as with the other vehicles in the top 10.  

 After appearing in the list for the first time in 2022, the Mini Hatch (Cooper/One) has again placed in the top 10, making up just over 2% of cars scrapped throughout the past 12 months.

With Mini Hatch models scrapped, sitting at an average age of 18 years old and 116,506 miles, these are definitely cars that are loved and well-used by their owners.  

 

Throwaway kings 

Rank   Car Model   % of Vehicles Scrapped 
1   Ford Focus   6.3% 
2   Vauxhall Astra  5.6% 
3   Vauxhall Corsa  4.8% 
4   Ford Fiesta   4.4% 
5   Volkswagen Golf   2.5% 
6   Renault Clio  2.5% 
7   Vauxhall Zafira   2.3% 
8   Mini Hatch (Cooper/One)   2.2% 
9   Peugeot 207  2.0% 
10   Volkswagen Polo   1.7% 

 

Branding bin

Despite the Ford Focus topping the charts as the most scrapped car model of 2024, Vauxhall is the car brand that was most scrapped overall in 2024.

With the Vauxhall Astra, Corsa and Zafira models all featuring in the top 10 most scrapped models, the most models of any manufacturer, the brand pipped Ford to the post with 17.3% of all cars scrapped being made by Vauxhall.  

With the Ford Fiesta also ranking in the top 10 overall, Ford places as the second most scrapped brand, with Volkswagen in third due to the Golf ranking in fifth, and Polo in 10th.

Peugeot and Renault follow to make up the top five most scrapped brands, joining Vauxhall, Ford and Volkswagen in a top flight that has remained relatively unchanged for the past few years.  

Quality over substance

Though BMW featured in the top 10 in 2022, the number of vehicles from the brand being scrapped has decreased, with the brand dropping from fifth to eighth position, with the percentage of the vehicles scrapped also falling by nearly 2% year-on-year.

On the other hand, Renault has seen a steady increase from sixth to fifth this year – perhaps a trend that could continue in the coming years.  

Honda (9th) has also appeared in the top ten for the first time since 2021, replacing Mercedes-Benz which has fallen into 14th position this year.  

Price points

Rank   Car Make   % of Vehicles Scrapped  
1   Vauxhall  17.3% 
2   Ford  16.8% 
3   Volkswagen  7.2% 
4   Peugeot  6.8% 
5   Renault  5.9% 
6   Citroen  4.5% 
7   Nissan  3.5% 
8   BMW  3.3% 
9   Honda  3.0% 
10   Audi  2.9% 

 

End of the road

David Kottaun, Operations Manager at Scrap Car Comparison commented:    

“Looking at our most scrapped car models is something that we’ve done quite a few times in recent years, and it’s always interesting to see which cars come out on top. The likes of the Ford Focus, Vauxhall Corsa and Vauxhall Astra have featured as the top three for many of these years, likely due to their popularity in the 00s, as these cars may now be coming to the end of their useful life. However, it’s interesting to see which cars are a little more transient within the topflight, with the likes of the Volkswagen Polo and Peugeot 207 replacing the Ford Transit and BMW 3 Series for this year. Who knows, maybe one of these cars will go on to be top in a few years!  

“It’s always worth getting as much life out of a car as possible, but there does unfortunately come a time when this may no longer be viable. In such situations, car owners can choose to send their cars to scrap to reclaim some of the value and also rest easy in the knowledge that it’s being disposed of in a responsible manner, with 95% of the mass of every vehicle recycled.”