Revealed: How our cars are getting heavier by the year

SUVs take some – but not all – of the blame. Stock image. Photo: Getty

Eddie Cunningham

Our cars are getting heavier – at a time when they should be saving fuel by being lighter.

Instead, the average weight of a new car has increased by nearly 400kg over the last seven years, according to Autocar data just published.

Analysis of road tests between 2016 and last year showed the mean average kerb weight of new cars rose from 1,553kg to 1,947kg.

The analysts put that down partly to the increasing number of SUVs and crossovers on the road arising from the surge in popularity of those ­heavier body styles. Those vehicles had an average weight of 1,722kg in 2016, which is 169kg more than for all models tested.

Many of the SUVs tested were ­heavier than their saloon or hatchback counterparts.

However, they are not wholly to blame, the experts said, as SUVs and crossovers averaged 1,906kg last year – below the average for all models tested last year.

The general conclusion, therefore, would appear to be that most cars are heavier than before.