The average age of imported used cars had risen to 12.4 years, while their average declared value for tax purposes had dropped by 9%. That meant more older, more polluting cars entering a country struggling with air quality in its major cities.
Three flashing alerts caught his eye.
Data from the Direcția Regim Permise de Conducere și Înmatriculări (DRPCIV) showed a 14% spike in used car imports from Germany compared to the same month last year. Most were 2017–2019 diesel models—Volkswagen Golf, BMW 320d, Audi A4. autodata ro
Adrian Ionescu, a data analyst at AutoData RO , stared at his screen in Bucharest. The dashboard before him wasn’t just numbers—it was the circulatory system of Romania’s car market. It was late October, and his team was preparing the quarterly “State of the Fleet” report. The average age of imported used cars had risen to 12