Top Salvage Cars in 2021

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It’s been an odd couple of years, to say the least, and you’d be forgiven for forgetting that 2020 and 2021 were in fact two separate years. But, the calendars don’t lie and as we are now a quarter of a way into 2022, the figures are well and truly in and it’s time for us here at National Scrap Car to get crunching and find the most salvaged cars of 2021.

Over a million cars get sent to the scrapheap every year as the latest cycle of end-of-life vehicles draws to an end, and in recent years Ford and Vauxhall have led the way in terms of highest volumes of cars being crushed, recycled and put to new uses.

The Ford Focus has had a grip of the top of the table for scrapped cars every year since 2017, followed each year by the Vauxhall Astra and Corsa, before the Fiesta rounds out the top four for Ford.

The fact these four sit at the top of the most scrapped lists is not a surprise, as the average age of scrapped vehicles sits at 14, and if you were to head back to the 2007 car sales charts, you would see the top four looking identical to that of the most scrapped lists of 2021. With Focus, Astra, Corsa and Fiesta continuing to top the sales charts until 2011, it is highly likely that these charts will follow suit for years to come.

But do salvage figures echo those of scrap figures, let’s take a look at the ten most salvaged cars of 2021 and find out for ourselves.

The Top 10 Salvage Cars in 2021

  1. Vauxhall Corsa
  2. Ford Fiesta
  3. Vauxhall Astra
  4. BMW 3-Series
  5. Volkswagen Golf
  6. Ford Focus
  7. MINI Hatch
  8. Peugeot 207
  9. Volkswagen Polo
  10. Audi A3

As we can see, while the Focus may still have its grip firmly on the top of the charts for scrapped cars, it languishes down in sixth place when it comes to scrap. Stepping up to the plate to take the top spot sits the Corsa, with almost 1,000 more than any other make or model on our lists for 2021.

Somewhat surprisingly in the top 10 are the appearances of the BMW 3-Series, the MINI Hatch and the Audi A3 – in fact the MINI Hatch Cooper was the single highest specific model in our figures for the past 12 months. While you’d be shocked to see any of these in the lists for scrapped cars, when you stop and think their inclusion in a salvage list actually makes quite a lot of sense.

MINI, BMW and Audi owners are often some of the most loyal you’ll find, and the vast majority would certainly look to fix their cars over selling or even scrapping, so it’s hardly surprising at all that these models would crop up in a list of cars being broken down for parts at the end of their lives – there’s always going to be a market for spares and parts for these motors.

What happens to my car once it’s been salvaged?

Once your motor has been designated for the salvage yard, we will, as always, come and collect the car from you wherever you may be, and take it on its final journey. Once there it will be stripped of its usable and valuable parts, either to be used whole in another car or to be broken down even further for spares. What remains of your car will then be put through the same strict scrapping process as all of our other scrap vehicles, a process you can learn more about in detail here.

If you’ve been looking at your old motor and have started to think that perhaps it’s time it became part of the 2022 figures, then we at National Scrap Car would be delighted to hear from you. Offering you the very best quote, with none of the hassle, guaranteed through our nationwide network of trusted dealers, we’ll come and collect the car no matter where you are for free. Our friendly and knowledgeable team would be delighted to start your scrap or salvage journey today and see just how much your old motor could be worth.