Automotive Market in El Salvador

The vehicle fleet grew from 713,000 vehicles in 2010 to 925,000 in 2015, of which 70% were used vehicles.

In the Salvadoran vehicle fleet used vehicles predominate. Of every ten vehicles that came into the country in 2015, seven were used, the vast majority coming from the United States.

Elsalvador.com reports that "...Data from the General Directorate of Customs show that in 2010 15.296 used vehicles came into the country, which represented a tax payment to the Treasury of $15.9 million, without taking into account the payment for the first registration of the import. At the end of 2015, the number of vehicles doubled.  This year 34.674 vehicles were imported, which represented revenue for the state in the form of taxes of $38.7 million. "

Growing insecurity and inefficient public transport are some of the reasons behind the increase in the import of used cars, in addition to the relatively low cost compared to new vehicles.

In relation to the total vehicle fleet,   "...According to statistics from the Transportation Ministry up until the first week of January, the fleet totalled 925.264 motor vehicles, including buses, minibuses, cars and trucks.  This saturation has meant that the Vice Ministry of Transportation (VMT) will analyze the possibility of reducing the years of importation for motor cars to five years."