Light passenger cars have become an average of three years older in the last decade. This effect is attributed to the Troika and the Covid-19 pandemic.

The rejuvenation of the fleet depends on the end of the semiconductor crisis and the return of scrappage incentives, argue motor vehicle associations. On the other hand, Portuguese people may merely be waiting for a better opportunity to change vehicles.

Between 2011 and 2021, the average age of passenger cars rose from 10.5 to 13.5 years, according to the Associação Automóvel de Portugal (ACAP). 2011 was the first year without an incentive program for scrapping old vehicles, which provided a discount of between 1,000 and 1,250 euros on the purchase of a new car.