30,000 Weimar, 80,000 Nezha... Young people are snapping up discounted inventory cars at 39% off during the year-end clearance.
Cars have always been one of the high - value items on the "New Year's goods" shopping list. Limited by their own economic conditions, some car buyers who want to buy their favorite models but are restricted by their budgets have started to pay attention to "stock cars".
Stock cars refer to the overstocked models that have not been sold in time after leaving the factory. Among these cars, there are regular models left unsold because of unpopular colors or configurations; there are also new - energy "abandoned projects" left after the brand withdraws from the market; and there are inventories of some luxury car brands that have not been disposed of.
As the Spring Festival approaches, car manufacturers are all running promotions. The rock - bottom prices are really tempting.
Some people take the opportunity to "find a bargain" and drive a more high - end car with less money; while others, although they have grabbed a "good deal", are accompanied by potential dangers every day due to factory shutdowns and the closure of after - sales services.
Here are their real stories:
01
End - of - year "fire sales" of cars
At the beginning of 2026, the news of price cuts and promotions by major car manufacturers frequently made the headlines of the media.
BMW was the first to fire the first shot in the price cuts among the BBA brands. The official guide prices of all 31 models under its banner were significantly reduced, with a maximum reduction of over 300,000 yuan.
Immediately afterwards, Tesla launched "ultra - low interest for 7 years" and "0 interest for 5 years" car - purchasing plans; new - force car manufacturers such as Xiaomi and NIO, as well as traditional car manufacturers such as GAC, Dongfeng, Volvo, and FAW - Volkswagen, also successively launched a series of preferential activities such as purchase tax subsidies, replacement subsidies, and financial interest discounts.
According to incomplete statistics, from January 1st to 10th, more than 20 car companies have announced various forms of promotional measures.
Hearing that BMW had cut prices, Lao Wu immediately put the matter of changing his car on the agenda.
His gray Passat had been driven for more than a decade. Although it had been well - maintained and had no major problems, due to its long service life, its appearance and interior looked a bit "weathered". The off - white seats were so worn that the intact leather surface could no longer be seen.
In his forties, Lao Wu is a small business owner who has been engaged in the building materials business in Beijing for more than twenty years. Since he has a lot of business occasions, the idea of replacing his car with a BBA brand has been brewing in his mind for several years. However, the business has not been good in recent years. His office has been moved from the Third Ring Road to the Fourth Ring Road, and then from the Fourth Ring Road to outside the Fifth Ring Road. As the company's performance declined, the idea of changing his car was repeatedly postponed.
After searching for information online, Lao Wu found that most of the BMW models with price cuts were non - mainstream models. The popular 3 Series and 5 Series did not see price cuts. Moreover, the price of the 5 Series he saw at an offline 4S store had even increased by 5,000 yuan.
"From a sales perspective, the discount is relatively large at the end of December to boost sales. In January, approaching the Spring Festival, many people want to buy cars to visit relatives during the New Year, so it is indeed possible that the prices of the best - selling models will be raised," said Xiao Lu, the person - in - charge of a car sales company in Shenyang.
"Moreover, foreigners celebrate Christmas at the end of the year, which affects sea transportation and customs clearance. Imported cars cannot be shipped in, and some may even be out of stock."
While new cars are having continuous promotions, the sales of stock cars on second - hand car platforms, social media, and online live - streaming rooms are also striving to attract customers.
"End - of - year clearance sale! Drive a 0 - kilometer sports car home at half price!" "Inventory clearance is in progress. Don't miss it or you'll have to wait for another year."
Qashqai at 30% off, Roewe at 40% off... From cars worth twenty or thirty thousand yuan to those worth two or three hundred thousand yuan, the stock cars with rock - bottom prices cover almost most brands and models in the car market.
The vast amount of information, true and false, is really dazzling.
"If domestic or joint - venture cars have not been sold for more than three to six months, and imported cars have not been sold for more than half a year, they are generally regarded as stock cars. If you don't mind the production date and know cars well, you may really find a bargain when buying a stock car," introduced Xiao Lu.
"For example, cars like the Passat and the Tanyue X produced in May 2025, which are in the 200,000 - yuan range, can now be bought for more than one hundred thousand yuan, and they enjoy national warranty and manufacturer's warranty."
After comparing several models such as BMW, Cadillac, and Volvo, Lao Wu basically made up his mind to buy a stock car and planned to visit offline stores when he had time.
Compared with middle - aged people's "loyalty" to fuel - powered cars, young people prefer electric cars more.
Since 2023, the new - energy vehicle industry has accelerated into a reshuffle period. Many brands that were once active in the market and even won the annual "sales champion", such as WM Motor, HiPhi, Nezha, and Jiyue, have become history overnight.
According to statistics, more than 400 new - energy vehicle manufacturers have withdrawn from the market in the past five years, leaving millions of "ownerless stock cars".
These models, known as "abandoned cars", have attracted many young consumers due to their sharp price drops.
WM Motor EX5 for 30,000 yuan, Nezha L for 80,000 yuan, Jiyue 01 for 90,000 yuan... The extremely tempting prices have given the thrifty post - 90s and post - 00s generations a chance to "find a bargain".
"In the past, customers would avoid 'stock cars' or 'abandoned cars' as soon as they heard about them, but now there are quite a few who come to inquire actively. Under economic pressure, cost - effectiveness has become an important consideration when buying a car," said Xiao Lu.
02
Buying "abandoned cars" at rock - bottom prices
In the eyes of outsiders, Xiaoyu's experience is a bit legendary. For the two "big - ticket items" in her life, a house and a car, she bought "abandoned" brands.
She bought a house from Evergrande, and soon after she bought it, Evergrande "exploded"; the car is the Nezha Shooting Brake Edition, and Nezha went bankrupt a few days after she started driving it.
"Living in an 'abandoned house' and driving an 'abandoned car'," Xiaoyu joked about herself. "Maybe I'm lucky. I got the house, and the car hasn't had any problems for the time being. The network hasn't been cut off, and I didn't encounter any trouble when renewing the insurance."
In Xiaoyu's view, buying an "abandoned car" just means losing the manufacturer's warranty, but the tens of thousands of yuan saved should be able to cover the future maintenance costs. "Moreover, although the 4S store is gone, there are several authorized maintenance points in Hefei, so there is still a place to repair the car if there is a problem."
Different from Xiaoyu, who was "caught in an abandoned project", Xiaoshui from Quzhou, Zhejiang, actively chose an "abandoned car".
In June 2025, Nezha Automobile was reported to have a broken capital chain and started the "judicial reorganization" process. In July, Xiaoshui bought the long - awaited Nezha GT for less than 90,000 yuan.
The car was launched in May 2023. It has a range of 580 kilometers and the original price was 230,000 yuan, which means it was sold at a 61% discount.
"It's cheap, cool, and the quality is okay," Xiaoshui described his original intention of buying the GT. "Young people should all like electric cars. They are highly intelligent, easy to operate. You don't need to remember where the high - beam and fog lights are. You only need to focus on shifting gears and turning, and most other operations can be done by voice."
In addition to being intelligent and hassle - free, Xiaoshui also values the appearance very much. "A fuel - powered car needs to be in the 300,000 - yuan range to have a decent appearance, while an electric car in the 150,000 - yuan range can look good."
As for the range and safety issues discussed by the outside world, Xiaoshui has his own views. He said: "The so - called battery range anxiety is only encountered when taking long - distance trips during holidays. If it's just for daily commuting, there's no need to worry. Another crucial issue is the electric car catching fire. There are also accident probabilities when taking the high - speed rail or flying on a plane. I don't care about these things. As long as you have good driving skills and don't crash, there won't be any problems."
However, Xiaoshui also has his own concerns, which is not knowing when the network will be cut off. For intelligent models that highly rely on software, once the car manufacturer's server is shut down and the car - machine connection is lost, functions such as remote control, online navigation, and voice assistant will be paralyzed, and the so - called 'intelligence' will no longer exist.
Relatively speaking, Xiaoyu and Xiaoshui are among the luckier "abandoned - car" owners. After Nezha Automobile stopped production, nearly 500,000 car owners had to face the reality of after - sales services being suspended, no place to repair the car, and difficulties in renewing insurance.
The original supply chain is interrupted. Once the vehicle is in a collision or damaged, it may even be difficult to find spare parts. Even if you are lucky enough to find the original spare parts, they are most likely salvaged parts, and the price is much higher than that in the 4S store.
The experience of Nezha car owners is not an isolated case. With the closure of car manufacturers such as WM Motor, HiPhi, and Jiyue, millions of car owners have been affected in total.
On social platforms, many "abandoned - car" owners complain, "It's not worth selling the car, but if you want to buy another brand, you have to spend tens of thousands of yuan. If you don't sell it, you don't know when the car will suddenly break down, which will catch you off guard."
03
Behind the "stock"
The "abandoned - car" owners who are in trouble due to brand shutdowns are just a microcosm of the ever - changing automotive industry at present.
Looking at the entire car market, the oversupply of new cars is an established fact. Based on this, the volume of stock cars is also growing day by day.
The reasons are as follows. Firstly, the automotive industry is updating at an increasingly fast pace. It's becoming more and more like the fast - moving consumer goods industry, with models being updated every year. Secondly, the new - energy vehicle industry is developing rapidly. Many brands blindly enter the market and only focus on expanding production capacity, resulting in cars being produced but not sold.
Data shows that as of the end of November 2025, the inventory of passenger cars in China has reached 3.79 million, 590,000 more than the same period last year, hitting a new high in the past two years.
Some experts predict that it will take at least 61 days to digest these inventories, and the pressure to sell cars is obvious.
"In recent years, people have been holding onto their wallets more tightly and spending more cautiously. In order to quickly recover funds and reduce inventory pressure, price cuts and fire sales have become the simplest and most straightforward way for car manufacturers and dealers," analyzed Xiao Lu.
As for whether stock cars can be bought or not, some people think that stock cars are the ones left after others' selection and may have flaws and hidden problems; while others believe that stock cars are just new cars that have been parked for a few more days and there is no big problem.
A Nuan has bought two cars, both of which are stock cars. The first one was bought when the national emission standard was changed from China 5 to China 6, and the second one was a model from the year before last bought last year.
"I didn't do any inspections when buying the car. I just drove it away directly," she said.
In A Nuan's view, a car is not only a means of transportation but also a big "toy" that can provide emotional value for herself.
After picking up the car, A Nuan spent 8,000 yuan to invite a professional designer to paint her favorite anime characters on her Alfa Romeo. The mint - green "anime - themed car" is very eye - catching, and it always attracts onlookers when driving on the road.
Once when she went to Nanjing to visit a friend and parked her car at the entrance of a shopping mall, many people took pictures, and some even found her social media account through the car photos and became her fans.
"I don't really care whether it's a stock car or not. As long as I like it and the price is right," A Nuan said. "My friend who bought a new model at the same time as me spent more than 40,000 yuan more. My car has been driven for more than a year, and there haven't been any problems for the time being."
Jiaojiao, the owner of a Tiguan I Pro, only found out that she had bought an eight - month - old "stock car" after picking up the car. Although she was "tricked" by the salesperson, she is very open - minded:
"Everyone wants to buy a new car, but what difference does it really make if it's parked for a few more months? Moreover, after being parked for a while, most of the formaldehyde in the car has dissipated.
Some people say that stock cars should never be touched. I think it's a bit absolute. If the salesperson clearly tells you that it's a stock car and there is a price discount, you can consider it. However, it's best to know cars yourself or have a friend who knows cars help you check, otherwise, you may really fall